eckerdt-schutz

The
Anton, Konrad & Annie Alois & Rosalie
& Associated (Peter & Johana Geier/Geyer, Kushnek, Heldt, Redinger, Rahm, Graud, Sapagina, Anapolsky)
Families, Adventures: Germany
Russia -
Huck, Neuheim, Novorosisjk
Darmstadt, Hesse
Rocklake, Sar-
les, Hansboro,
Sutton,
Hastings,
Colorado,
Montana

Left:
John Eckerdts
Rocklake
farm home of
willow & sod.
U.S.A
1
9 generations
of Eckert/dts
from Anton
1742-2003
Most every family history is a collection of names, places and dates with
events sometimes dramatized. The Ekerdt-Schutz family adventures in Russia
provide natural dramatization.
Being an adventurer into the past, I think of my grandfather and his own
adventures with awe. At the age of 5, I accompanied my parents in their 1928
Dodge in October of 1940 from Peoria, IL to Sarles. I recall only the fright of
walking past the town square, where a bull was tied up or within a fence. My
brother told me this animal would not harm me. I remember the old fashioned
tavern we visited one evening. It was like Gunsmoke a typical frontier bar. We
sat in old fashioned booths. The light was dim. There was much smoke in the
room. Beer was served in heavy thick glass mugs, much like our old rootbeer
mugs. My father was diplomatic in his visiting and grampa John Eckerdt
impressed me as being a stern, gruff and tough old bearded fellow wearing a
hat similar to a railroad conductor but made of heavier material. He dressed
in plain dark clothing, much like the old German men in the town I grew up
in. Everything seemed quite old fashioned. There was no pavement; only a
boardwalk along the storefronts.
From the early-1940s, I recall an old octagon barrel Winchester. I learned
that Grampa gave it to my bother and I. Wayne sold it during the mid-40s to
support his wayward habits. I next recall the sadness shown by my mother on
learning that John Eckerdt had died in 1945 at 82. He died in his sleep. I recall
my mother talking about being German but I doubt if anything was brought up
about her dad being from Russia.
We visited Sarles again in 1949 or 1950. I got to drive dads Kaiser around
Sarles which didnt take long. I enjoyed adventure into the dump where many
Model T-era cars were deposited. I purchased two sets of cowel lamps off of
Model As in Estensons used or junk car lot for $2 per set.
I sold them in 1960 for $35 a pair. I brought home numerous items from
Grampas barn workshop.
Grama Margaret was still living there. How I regret now, not gathering
old letters, pictures and documents from the attic. The house was later burnt
down.
I experienced a short dash of inquisitiveness while in the Navy at the Los
Angeles Genealogy Library in around 1954. From then on I busied myself
with military, college, marriage, kids and vocation. My interest in adventure
and accumulation continued.
From time to time, I would ask questions about the Eckerdts and it seemed
as if Aunt Amelia or Aunt Polly would reply with implications that the Eckerdts
were from Russia, but it didnt seem to them to be a very interesting topic.
Interest increased when in around 1981 or 1982, my second cousin, Miriam
Peters wrote to a number of us. It seems as if she thought we were Jew origin.
She asked me to help locate the burial location of our great grandmother Rosalie
Schutz as if this may be a clue to our national origin.
Following this, I joined the two Germans from Russia Societies, bought
Karl Stumpfs book and began extensive inquisitions. I pumped and pumped
my mother, Uncle Albert Eckerdt; and any cousin or relative who would dis-
cuss family history. Mother and Uncle Al asked of me: Why are you doing
this? It made me feel a bit queer. Uncle Al
asked: Are you going to try to nd out if Efe
and I are cousins or something? I believe that
Aunt Efes Janzens are from Alexanderfeld,
a Mennonite community across the river from
Neuheim.
One Eckerdt hung up on me before I could
nish my introduction and cause. I called back
thinking he thought I was a telephone sales
person and tried to introduce my cause more
promptly. He interrupted me before I was n-
ished, said Not interested! in a very unfriendly
tone and hung up.
Another Eckerdt was more polite: He
said Im watching 60 minutes right now. I
apologized, hung up, and returned the call later.
After I expressed my cause, he said he was not
interested and hung up. Ive never been one to
keep my foot in the door where there is disinter-
est. We cant all have the same interests or there
would only be one auto manufacture.
In looking at the cultural history of Ameri-
can immigrants, we see again and again that
people (immigrants) often tend to gloss over
and sometimes disassociate themselves from
their roots or ethnic history. This has been especially seen in rst and second
generation immigrants. This behavioral response occurs in the context of
assimilation and is perhaps proportional to the degree of discrimination they
experienced.
Mother shared with me many old photos -a few of which came from Rus-
sia. Myriam sent to me photocopies of valuable pictures sent to her by Aunt
Linda in the 1950s or 1960s.
I fear a house re which would destroy this accumulation and thus I feel
compelled to put it on a le which can be distributed to those interested. No
amount of insurance would pay for the loss of these few family pictures.
It is hoped that you who are interested can still contribute something I
omitted.
This booklet is not a piece of scientic research but rather the product of a
family undertaking. The content may not be absolutely correct in every way. The
content is from others and is all we have to go on. Inaccuracies are regretted.
Our people did not keep records other than names in Bibles. Unfortunately,
the Jacob Eckerdt Bible came up missing from the nursing home Jacobs wife
died in. Somehow my mothers Bible which had been passed down to her from
her grandmother Rosalie Schutz must have gone to the auction house with the
rest of her furniture prior to her moving to a senior citizens home. She claimed
that it held the names of all of her mothers brothers. I grieve over this loss.
Without records, we can only record experiences of others who parallel others
as closely as we know. This is done at the expense of imagination.
This booklet is a collection of memories, and data from other families
who no doubt experienced the same as our Eckerdts and Schutz, symbolic
pictures, and copies of old photographs. If you wade through this compilation
and then reect on its content, you will conclude as I know, that it is quite in-
complete. Many questions remain unanswered and particularly since the most
knowledgeable people have passed away (one of the most knowledgeable was
Rachel Bucholz). We can only imagine how some things took place and draw
parallels with documented experiences of others.
May this accumulation of memoirs be a tribute to the strong character of
our families and bring you to acknowledge their numerous tests of endurance,
which brought hope, despair and restored hope in a distant land. Faith and
endurance triumphed over adversity. Our people were brave & the story about
them is worth telling. Ours is a rich inheritance.
The family members, who remained in Russia later suffered with war,
revolution, famines, lawless tragedies and exile.
Call collect, write or E-Mail: PHONECOINC@AOL.COM with additions,
corrections or/and contributions to Ron Knappen, W21975 Hess Rd, Galesville,
WI 54630. 608-582-4124
3 major relocations in 125 years.
For those of us who want more than just a fuzzy awareness of our origins:
2
Johns great-great grandparents were amongst
27,000 who left a country of strife & afiction, whose
endurance was tested continually during their trek to Russias Volga & Kuban &
while pioneering there & in the U.S.
These Germans were forced into farming regardless of previous trades, had
nothing but mud to build huts & found severe shortages of clothing, food, animals,
farm implements, feed & grain. They were cheated by local Russian government,
subjected to detailed regulations such as when to sew & when to read, when to
sell a cow or buy a pig & passports required to leave the village enforced by the
dungeon.
The rst decades saw Spring oods wash huts away, bitter winters they werent
prepared for & crops failed from successive hot dry summers. The main highway
through the area was the scene of frequent robbings & murders by adventurous
renegades & escapees. Upon nally prospering, our Germans became tasty morsels
for the Kalmurks occasional thievery, the feared Kosak followers & warlike Kir-
ghiz who frequently burned villages, stole & carted our limited goods, horses (any
transportable commodity) and our people off to the Eastern slave markets. Towns
people were murdered & towns devastated beyond rebuilding.
In the 1880s the Eckerts, Geyers, & others migrated to the picturesque fertile &
lawless Kuban area inhabited by 3 native tribes, the Kuban wild-west-like Cossacks
& the largest conglomeration of races and languages found no where else on the face
of the earth according to the author of a world atlas in 1882.
While a gunsmith in the army serving under barbarous conditions for 5 years,
John married Amali Schutz from Novorossiljsk, Black Sea town & lost 3 children
before bearing a daughter in the U.S. in less than 1 year after release from active duty,
he was redrafted resulting
in departure with only
handbags for Winnepegs
severe winter.
In June of 1893, he
walked to North Dakota
& in 1897 he took on a
homestead.
Left:
Believed to be
Amelias Uncle
John Schutz &
children, 1908.
By 1910, seven
out of 13 of
Amelias broth-
ers were alive.
4 are known to
have been shot
later in the revo-
lution.
3
Tribute and honor to the following two so-
cieties for help with our family history:
Mission Statement
An international organization dedicated to the dis-
covery, collection, preservation, and dissemination of
information related to the history, cultural heritage
and genealogy of Germanic Settlers in the Russian
Empire and their descendants.
American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 631 D Street, Lincoln, NE 68502-1199
Andresen, Barb, 1005 N. Dunton, Arlington Hts., IL 60004
Anna, (The Book Menanites) Alexanderfeld, (authorized important description of Kuban)
Bauer Monroe Apartments, Apt. 23, Rolla, ND 58367; 701-477-6762
Black, Robert, 2101 Circle Rd., Worland, WY 82401-2519
Cavelier County Republican, Langdon, NE 58249
Dick, Cordell, 124 East Denver Avenue, Bismarck, ND 58501; 702-258-3532 parents, Vern, 702-682-5167
LHDyck@MTS.net (authorized important description of Kuban (Anna))
Eckerdt, Eduard, 01+49+7+09127-951219 or Fax 09127-578968 or Email: Eckerdt@hotmail.com
Eckerdt, Elenora (Mrs. Alex), ph:0911-617293 Nuremberg, Germany
Eckerdt, Miral, 17028 North 66th Avenue, Glendale, AZ 85308
Eckerdt, Mrs. Jacob (Ellis), Rolla, ND 477-6762
Eckerdt, Robert-Rollette (banker) 701-246-3697
Ellingson, Carol, 725 S. Fair St.,Olney, IL 62450
Eichhorn, Jacob, 4501 Arbor Dr., Midland, MI 48640; Email: JAMA9312@prodigy.net
Emory, Paul, RR 8, Box 178, Decator, IL 62522
Evans, Doris (Eckhardt), AHSGR Frank Village Coordinator, 4148 Christensen Rd. E., Almira, WA 99103; 509-639-2284;
evansdfe@aol.com
Flegal, Art, 1895 Oakdell Drive, Menlo Park, CA 94025-6167; 415-322-8694
Fleming, Harry & Eleanor, 19907 Schoolhouse Road, Mokena, IL 60448
Fruck, Gotlieb, 518 NE lst Street, Apt. 6, Rolla, ND 58367
Gerk, Edward, 621 Grandview Road, Kelowna, BC V1V 2C8, Canada
G.R.H.S., 1008 East Central, Bismarck, ND 58501; 701-223-6167
Goats, Bernice, 701 Birch St. S., Kimberly, ID 83341
Good, Steve, Hansboro; 701-266-5347
Groff, Lydia & Bonnie, 612 Highpoint Drive, Alexandria, LA 71301
Hambrecht, Agnes, 713 Madison St., Apt. 203, Salk City, WI 53583
Heldt, Donald, Sarles, ND 697-5262 (Alex Donald is his son)
Hemplsing, Linda, 21979 Cuba Road, Kildeer, IL 60047; 312-438-4065
Horner, Barb, 10965 W Siera Pinta Dr., Sun City, AZ 85373-3327; 623-362-1999
Johnston, Dorothy, 2030 B Street, apt. 4, Lincoln, NE 68502; 1-402-472-5658
(Bill Eckerdts Daughter)
Kiseloewe, Tatjana, Tel/Fax 0911-4719287 or email: kiseloewe@t-online.de
(Eduards sister)(Eduards sister)
Klein, Judy & David, 1725 - 5th St. SW, Minot, ND 58701; 701-852-4214.
JKLEIN@SRT.COM
Knappen, Jean, 3005 7th St W, LeHigh Acres, FL 33971
NICOL@EKEBY.US
Knappen, Nic, PO Box 542, Baraboo, WI 53913
or Ekeby Publishing Serv., 708 Elizabeth St, Baraboo, WI 53913
Knappen, Ron, PO Box 70, Galesville, WI 54630; 608-582-2784
Lakota Press, Lacota, ND 58344
Lawrence, Irene, 1108-5th Street, Langdon, ND 58249; 701-256-3192
Lucas, Donelda, 1401-19th Street North, Bismarck ND 58501
Long, Miss Velma R., 2550 Pacic Coast Hwy, #182, Torrance, CA 90505
Martin, Marrean, 726-6th Avenue, Havre, MT 59501; 406-256-6501
Martin, Mrs. Veryl (Carolyn), 2715 Hawken Street, Apt. 4, Bismarck, ND 58501
McMahon, Amanda, HC1 Box 945, LAnse, MI 49946. ammcmaho@mtu.edu
McMAhon, Francis, 6241 Mill St., Levering, MI 49755
Menard, Mrs. Fred (Elizabeth),726 East Third Street; 402-463-7885 Hastings, NE 68901
Messick, Ms. Jeane Messick, 30400 S. Graceland Ln., Frankfort, IL 60423-6939
Miller, Mike, GRHS Repository, NDSU Library Institute for Regional Studies Fargo ND 58105
Napier, Linda, 199 Kermandie Rd., Geeveston, Tasmania, Australia 7116
Miller, Larry D., 1015 Preston Ave., Stillwater, OK 74074
Nielsen, Ema, 670 E. Poplar Ave., Number 79, Porterville, CA 93257; 209-784-3912
Norheim, Eugene, 6869 97th St. NE, Rock Lake, ND 58365-9623enorheim@utma.com
North Dakota Institute for Regional Studies, Minard Hall, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58105
Olson, Mrs. Glenn, Route 1, Box 11, Rock Lake, ND 58365 (Dorothy) 701-266-5603
Pleve, Dr. Igor, c/o Arthur Flegel, 1894 Oakdell Dr., Menlo Park, CA 94025; igor@pleve.saratov.su
Printer, The, Langdon, ND 58249
Peters, Mrs. Lana, P.O. Box 345 Spring Green WI 53588 (Joseph Stalins daughter)
Sack, Harold, 5175 Scenicvue Dr., Flint, MI 48532
Sampson, Lydia and Bonnie Groff, 612 Highpoint Drive, Alexandria, LA 71301; 318-443-7121
Schootz, Bernard B., 2445 Via Mariposa, San Dimas, CA 91773; 818-966-6957
Singer, Patty (Mrs. Bruce), Fargo, ND; 701-232-6038 (Wm. Eckerdts granddaughter)
Sonnenberg, Mrs. Katherine (Ritter), 824 Locust Drive, Sleepy Hollow, IL 60118
Turtle Mountain Star, Rugby, ND 58368
Workman, Jill, 12412 N. 78th Dr., Peoria, AZ 85381; 623-334-3746
Zachmeier, William and Betty Joe, North of City, RFD, Mandan, ND 58554; 701-663-5693
Many from the above list are Jacobs lineage 1983.
In Osgar Osgaard, Strutgardt or Stutgardt Germany is a library on Germans from Russia.
4
From Germany to Russia ........................................................5
In Russia ................................ 1786 ................................................... 11
I. Huck .......................................................................................... 16
Eckerdt chart ................................................................................... 24
II. Kuban .............................. 1882? ................................................. 29
Neuheim ............................................................................................ 32
Coassacks ....................................................................................... 37
Evidence ............................................................................................ 41
III. John in Army ....................1887-1891 ....................................... 45
IV. Schutz ............................ 1888-2003 .............................. 48
Schutz - Eckerdt combined chart .......................................... 58A
To and in America Why & Who: Peter, John & Jacob ..... 59
I. Pete in Nebraska .............1895 .................................................. 59
II. John & Companions .................................................................. 66
A. Leaving ............................1892 ........................................... .66-70
B. Canada & Wahala ............ 1892-3 ........................................... 70
C. Homestead ....................1897 .................................................. 72
II I. Jacob & Family ................... 1900 ............................................... 81
Life in U.S ........................................................................................ 82
I. Eckerdts farm ...................1901 .................................................. 94
Others from Russia in Towner County .................................... 95
II. To & in Sarles ....................1911 .................................................. 98
III. Family Grows ....................1898-1915 .................................... .105
Margarets children .............. 1918 ............................................... .142
Back in Russia ................................................................................ .143
Eduard Eckerdt ...................1999 ............................................... .144
Successively Dated ..................................................................... .145
Troubles ............................. 1915-1956 .....................................145
In Novorossiysk ......................................................................... .147
Real-Life Adversity: Gottlieb.1916-81 .................................. .152
Fun Amidst Diculty.1921-1928 (Annual Fairs) .............. .156
Helen Dmitriew Experience ..................................................... .159
A New Home ................................................................................. .160
Dr. J. Windholz Version .............................................................. .160
Contributors
Here-in are scrapbook pastings somewhat organized and regrouped chronologically for the records of anyone so interested to view. Ron compiled and con-
densed most of his accumulation into these fewer pages within and as such nds easier reference to a subject in question. Intent is to add clarication, new evidence,
views and to expand somewhat with pictures of those who would share.
It is hoped that by freely sharing this with you who are interested, pertinent and gap lling data may be contributed if available. Original photos and documents
would be handled delicately and returned after copying for this publication.
While this publication may fall far short of conventional journalism, the highest priority in purpose was to preserve and share the eventful trek of the Eckerdt
and Schutz families with as much clarity and accuracy as possible. There can be no guarantee of strict accuracy because of the errors in records. Unity and repeti-
tions verbal and written reports and articles contribute to establish accuracy.
It appears to be difcult to prevent estrangement as generations add up, even beyond 3rd and 4th generations. There are many Eckerts and the name as with
other names, has a common origin. The only known origin for our Huck Eckert is Anton b. 1744.
There appear to have been two large groups of Germans in and from Russia. In Russia they are the Bessarabian Germans and the Volga River Germans.
Odessa is in Bessarabia. These Germans are also called Black Sea Germans since the Black Sea borders Bessarabia. These Germans speak a bit different
dialect than the Volga Germans and are mostly from a different part of Germany: Hesse, I believe. Such are the Schutz families. The Schutz name is associated with
Bessarabian Germans. Also, as with most other German names, one may nd Schutz who are Jew. There is a Schutz Beer in France. They are found in Geneva,
Switzerland Telephone directories.
Novorssisjk, where ours lived is home to few Germans and very little if anything is known of their existance there or from where they originated. Amalis
Bible, with family names went to the auction house (not with intent) with Lydias furniture. Without knowing where they lived prior to Novorossisjk or who the
parents were, we are at somewhat of a dead end.
The Eckerdts were Darmstadt, then Volga, and later: Kuban Germans. The Schutz were Hesse, then possibly Polish and later Black Sea North Caucasian
Germans.
Germans came to Bessarabia mainly in 1824 and dealt with many of the same hardships as did the Volga Germans. Our Schutz were possibly of this catagory.
Most of them settled in South Dakota - near and in Eureka and in Western N.D. - around Dickenson. Lawrence Welk was of this group.
The Volga Germans are mentioned in detail in the beginning of this manuscript. Most came to Eastern Wisconsin and Nebraska with the largest group in and
around Hastings and Lincoln Nebraska.
From these two groups came two separate Germans from Russia Societies - one out of Lincoln Nebraska and the other from N.D. Ron joined these in the mid
1980s to learn what he could from them about our Eckerdts and Schutz. However, neither family were easy to track because of the peculiar geography they last
lived in. Learning that our Eckerdts were of the Huck Ekerts was very helpful. The events reguarding adventures of departing Germany & life on the Volga have
been described by numerous historians. Within here is somewhat of a composite and condensed version of these events.
The last pages within provide a glimpse of how it was for our great uncles, aunts, and cousins who stayed in Russia. Not long after our grandparents came
to the U.S. the Revolutionary period began. It was a terrible time to be alive in Russia; there was great suffering and 10,000,000 individuals perished. Suffering
continued well into the 1940s. Hitler exterminated 6 million Jews. Stalin exterminated 50 million people of all races.
5
Many essay collections from a scrapbook record of genealogical
facts and events were read, concepts were combined, and a book report
resulted with many statements, quotations and deductions left unaltered.
According to the editor of Rootsweb 5-2-2003: One can not copyright
or own genealogical facts.
Even so, the compiler strived to thank all contributors, requested
permission to use material which otherwise may have been interpreted
as plagiarism. This compiler apologizes for omissions of thanksgiving,
omissions of credit and writings which may be offensive tothe reader. The
intent was simply to preserve our family history whether good or bad.
It was handed down to us here, that our Eckerts were from Darmstadt(sp). The below list is out of Karl Stumpfs book.
Are any of the locations mentioned following the name from the Darmstadt area? Which of the locations in the right-side column would indicate that
they ended up in Huck or near Huck? Why is it that Anton Eckerts family is in the censuss in the 1795 of Huck but the name Anton is not used in any
of Karl Stumpfs Eckerts? Unfortunately, many were missing from Dr. Stumpfs book. E-Mail: PHONECOINC @ AOL.COM
Eckert, Friedrich, from ILLENSCHWANG/Gunzenhausen-Bay, 1896, to GNADENBURG/N-Kaul
Eckett, Katharina, from DETTENHAUSEN/Tubingen-Wu, 1817, to ELISABETHTAL/Kaul
Eckert, Michael, Weingartner, from ZELL/Eblingen-Wu, 1817, to ELISABETHTALIKau1
Eckert, Joh. Leonhard, 1789, + 1831 in BERGDORF/Od, S.: Christian Friedr., * 1833 in ODESSA, Wagnerl
Eckert, Josef, 1808, to GR.-LIEBENTAL/Od, RL: 3591
Eckert, Franz, to KANDEL/Od; RL: 881
Eckert, Joh. Leonhard, * 1789, + 1853, from BERGDORF/Od3
Held, Christian, 30 J., from SEFFLENHEIM/Bischweller-El, 1809 to KANDEL/od, RL: 22; S.: Christian 31
Held, Heinrich, 1805, to LUSTDORF/Od, RL: 321
Eckert, Friedericke, from ALTBACH/Eblingen-Wu, 18311
Eckert, Jakob Friedr., from ALTBACH/Eblingen-Wu, 1832, to GNADENTAL/Bessl
Geyer, Barbara, from SCHANBACH/Eblingen-Wu, 1817, foKAUKASUSl
Eckarhdt (Eckert) , Christoph Friedr., from STETTEN/Waiblingen-Wu, 1822, to SARATA/Bess, Weingammer, * 1790,
+ 18691
Eckert, Christoph Friedr., Weing., * 1790, + 1869, from STETTEN/Waiblingen-Wu, K: Immanuel Friedr., * 1815, + 1831, from SARATA/
Bess3
Eckert, Anna Maria, from ENDERSBACH/Waiblingen-Wu3
Eckert, Jakob Friedr., from BRACKENHEIM/Heilbronn-Wu, K: Gottl. Fried. (1832 n. Lichtental), Jakob Friedr., + 1850, Sophie Fried.,
Karoline Justine, + 1889 in Sarata3
Eckert, Christian Ludwig, Gartner * 1796, + 1867, from SCHOZACH/Heilbronn-Wu, 1822, to SARATA/Bessl
Eckert, Jakob Friedr., from BRACKENHEIM/Heilbronn-Wu-3
Eckert, Gottlob Jakob, * 1803, from BRACKENHEIM/Heilbronn-Wu; K: Friedrich, Christian, Jakob, Gottlob3
Eckert, Christian Friedr., from SCHOZACH/heilbronn-Wu3
Eckert, Alexander, Johann, Eleonore, from SCHOZACH/Heilbronn-Wu3
Eckert, Jakob, Pachter, from KLEMENSWALDE7Ostpr. 1833, to JEKATERINOSLAW, S.: Franz. 1814,
Heinrich * 1816, Friedrich * 1818, August * 1822, Jakob * 18241
Eckhardt, Joh. Heinr., * 1716, to KRASSNOJAR, K.: Johannes, *
1742,
Heinrich, * 1754, Joh. Georg, * 1748, Elizabeth, * 1761, Joh. Konrad, * 17635
Eckhard(t) , Joh. Jakb. (Ku) (7), from HAMBACH/Saarunion-El, 18171
Eckert, Michael, Josef, from SIEGEN/Seltz-El, 1804, to JOSEFSTAL/Od, RL: 1, 61
Eckert, Anna-Maria, to TEPLITZl
Eckert, Christian Friedr., * 1823 in ODESSAl
Eckert, Leonhard, Weingartner, from HOF. U. LEMBACH/Ludwigsburg-Wu, 1820, to WEINAU/Taul
Eckert, Michael, from KL.-INGERSHWIM/Ludwigsburg-Wu, 1817, to GULDENDORF/Odl
Eckert, Gottlieb, * 1803, Jakob, to LICHTENTAL/Bessl
Eckert, Katharina, geb. Oswald, from DETTENHAUSEN/Tubingen4
Eckert, Friedrich, from ILLENSCHWANG/Gunzenhausen-Bay4
Eckert, Martin, from MONTAUERWEIDE/Tragheimerweide-Da, 1859, Geb. SAMARA5
1Eckert, Joh. Heinrich, from LARDENBACH/Grunberg-He5
Eckert, from STREITBERG/Gelnhausen-He, 17665,
Geyer, Heinrich, Josef, from ROESCHWOOF/Hagenau-El, 1817-1
Geyer, Jakob, * 1848, u. UNGARN, to BRIENNE/Bessl
Geyer, Franz, Georg. Joh. Georg, from EICHTERSHEIM/Sinsheim-Ba, 1809, to KOSTHEIM/Tau, RL: 101
Geye~, Jo~annes, from BUDINGEN/Stadt-He5
Geyer, Christing, s. Christoph Gutmann5
Geyer, Maria, 17655
Frick, Christian, * 1777, + 1844, from LATHAUSEN/Mergentheim-Wu3
Frick, Jakob, * 1803, from KIRCHBERG/Tubingen-Wu3
Frick, Shcmied, from PLLATTENHARDT/Essl.4
Held, Joh. Georg, from TUTTLINGEN-Wu, 1817, to KAUKASUSl
Held, Heinrich, 1809, to KRONENTAL/Kr, RL: 501
Held, Jakob, from OBERBALDINGEN-Ba, 18011
Held, Anna Christine, from GEORGENHAUSEN/Darmst.-He5
Held, Hermann5
Held, Wolfgang5
Held, Georg Heinrich, Strumpfwirker (ev.) , from SCHWALBACH/Wetzlar-He5
6
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11
Wi t h i n 4
year s st ar t i ng
1763, 104 villag-
es containg about
225 each people
were established
in the Volga area.
By 1862, over
100,000 German
settlers had found
304 primary colo-
nies which begat
3,000 daughter
colonies even to
Siberia and Cen-
t ral Asi a. By
1848, there were
over 200 Ger-
man agricultural
settlements by
60,000 colonists.
In the period from 1763-1769 about 25-27,000 emigrated from all
parts of Germany, but especially from Hesse and the Rhineland region, and
they established the following mother-colonies: 10 near Petersburg, 6 near
Chernigov, and 104 in the Volga territory. Three of these were attacked
and destroyed by the Kirgiz tribesmen; of the remaining 101 colonies, 56
were on the Meadowside and 45 on the Hilly side; 33 were Catholic and 68
Evangelical. In different periods between 1789 and 1862 the emigration
was directed to South Russia, into the so-called Black Sea region.
Taken directly from Fred Heldts 5-21-1986 letter:
About the origin of the family, in about the year 1750 (you may con-
rm this as I am not too sure about it and it may be off a few years). Princess
Catherine of Germany married Peter the Great of Russia. She refused to
marry him unless she could take some Germans with her; she said, She
would not go to this far and distant land without some of her people. The
Russians agreed that she could take 3,000 Germans with her provided they
were artisans who could teach the Russians the trades, such as brick laying,
carpentry, engineering,
etc. Both the Heldt and
Eckerdt families at that
time went with her to
Russia. Rons com-
ments: I doubt that
our Eckerdts went
with her. They more
certainly went later
with the Volga Ger-
mans. The Heldt fam-
ily had four sons and
dint have sufcient re-
sources for all of them
so two of them went to
Russia with Catherine
the Great. The Hel-
dt family came from
Darmstadt in Germany
and I presume there-
fore that the Eckerdts
did also.
There was much
propaganda in Kath-
erine the Greats offer.
For example, one of
the promises was that they were free to go where they liked in Russia.
This was a disappointment because once they got into Russia, they were
told that their destination was to the distant Volga River region, where they
were expected to farm.
Arrangements for transportation to the site were painfully slow. They
waited and waited in primitive huts near the capitol for weeks and months
before they could begin the trek to the Volga. For the most part, men had to
walk this distance, and the hardships they experienced tested their endur-
ance to the utmost. Many became sick and had to be left behind in Russian
towns to recover, some died along the route. Some groups had to spend the
winter in various regions where they were quartered with Russian peasants
in their smelly huts and got a real taste of the manners and customs of their
new home-
land. They
wished that
t hey wer e
back in Ger-
many; but
there was no
returning.
T h e
Volga coun-
t r y was a
wild frontier
land, and the
only inhab-
itants were
n o m a d i c
tribes of the Kirghiz and Kal-
mucks. On the west side of the
Volga, the banks rose steeply
into a wooded range of hills,
cut by deep gorges, a favorite
resort of robber bands made up
of runaway serfs. The whole
area to be settled was covered
with tall grass and bush, much
of it almost impenetrable, and
none of it ever having seen a
plow. The only signs of civi-
lization were a few scattered,
rather new frontier towns on the
Volga banks, a few boats on the
river, and occasional wagons on
the Astrakhan highway which
passed through the hill country
west of the river.
Katherines agents prom-
ised that houses would be ready upon arrival. But in most cases, the new-
comers found neither houses nor the lumber to build them. The lumber had
to be oated down the Volga from a long ways off, up hill and down dale
with horses before building could be started. In the meantime, the settlers
were shown how to make themselves mud huts Russian style, in which
they had to live for as long as two or three years.
There were no shelters for the people or the animals. There was also
very little food. The colonists erected their huts that spring after planting
the elds. The type of hut our ancestors had to live in was called a zemly-
anka. These were earthen houses about 4 feet deep in the ground and large
enough so that one could move around in them. They were approximately
24 feet wide and 40 feet long. One could make four rooms out of the space.
The partial dugout was built upward 3 feet out of the ground, and windows
and doors were added. It was covered with wood and sod. Refrigeration
was outside, as were the sanitation facilities. Both animals and human
beings lived in the zemlyanka. The living conditions did not discourage
these people, however.
They all had hope for a better tomorrow. There was a lot of snow, and
it was very cold - 30 to 40 degrees below zero. But the German farmers
knew how to protect themselves from the frost and snow. They also had
cause to recall that old proverb that says that all that glitters is not gold
- that was certainly true of their rst winter in the Volga area. There was
much suffering and sorrow to overcome, but they stuck it out and were
rewarded.
Animals were in short supply. Farm implements were supplied, but
they were extremely crude. The feed, seed, and grain that the settlers needed
was always late. There were shortages of clothing and food. Russian ofcials
proteered unscrupulously at the expense of the immigrants and made it a
practice to use ration cuts as a form of punishment for those who didnt plow
enough land. After bitterly cold winters for which they were not well prepared,
came spring oods to wash away their mud huts and make the people ee to
the hills. Summers were hot and dry, and crop failure followed crop failure.
It took years of trial and error to learn to cope with the problems of farming
in this region. Not until 1775 did they harvest their rst good crop, and be-
come in-
dependent of
government help
in the matter of food for
themselves and animals.
In the meantime,
they piled up quite a debt.
Those who came with in-
tentions of pursuing voca-
tions other than farming,
received a shock very early, and were told in no uncertain terms that all
immigrants without exception were to plow their portion of land. Whipping
and penitentiary punishment would be inicted on those who inicted, even
though they may have never farmed before. Any kind of initiative other
than farming was discouraged. A set of instructions issued in 1769 regulated
every detail of life, including when to sew and when to read.
You had to ask permission to sell a cow or buy a pig. You had to
have a passport to leave your own home village. These regulations were
enforced with the knout and the dungeon. It didnt seem that any authority
could be pleased. When any enterprising groups tried to take off to return
to Germany, Kosak troops overtook them and used persuasive measures
to make them return.
Unscrupulous people were appointed henchmen to rule each village
and to collect their percentage of production. As early as 1768, complaints
were lodged against them by some of the colonists concerned, who asked
to be taken over by the crown. It took years to get rid of henchmen, and
the last wasnt removed until 1779.
German ingenuity and techniques brought from the homeland im-
proved on the methods of the Russian peasant, and nally made the land
productive. The old and the weak died, but the younger and stronger worked
hard and longed for a better existance. Eventually, the younger people
ceased to dream of returning to Germany, and looked upon the Volga area
as their home.
As mentioned earlier, this area had been the refuge of the disaffected
and the adventurous from all parts of western Russia for many years.
Serfs mistreated by their masters, criminals hiding from the law, de-
serters from the army, peasants tired of the daily grind settled this portion,
and lived a lawless life of adventure beyond the reach of the tsar. The
hilly, wooded country was their favorite resort. Here were good hiding
places, and here the great Astrakhan highway offered convenient booty.
Many a traveler was waylaid, robbed, and murdered by these bands. To be
safe, transport had to be accompanied by troops. The new German villages
relatively unprotected in this wilderness were a tempting morsel for these
brigands. The Germans represented a superior civilization having many
things that the Russians lacked and were thus a fascinating attraction for
the robbers.
SUFFERINGS OF THE FIRST GERMAN COLONISTS DURING THE FIRST TWO
DECADES, 1764 TO 1784
(An article in gratitude for the benefactors in Lincoln, Nebraska) by John Erbes,
Pastor at Kukkus, Volga Republic [From Die Welt-Post, Thursday, 14 May, 1925]
The many trials through unpopulated areas allowed robbers to establish convenient places
to waylat travelers. Other colonists were attacked on the streets, in the elds, woods, and even
in their homes. These robber gangs which lurked in small and large groups in bushes along the
roadways in various strategic places, were well organized and disciplined. They followed the
orders of experienced leaders who had afliations with the wealthy [Russians]. Their typical
pattern of robbery was to warn their faces, allow themselves to be bound, and stripped of valuable
possessions in order stay alive. Before the Germans came in large numbers, it was not easy to
resist the demands of the robbers. There are examples where small individual caravans attacked by
13
robbers surrendered meekly and begged for their lives in exchange for their treasured goods.
Daring to ght these savages required courage because anyone who offered the least
resistance and was overpowered was horribly tortured and killed as a warning to others. Only a
few years ago ve such robbers attacked thirty Russian sailors 25 versts [17 miles] from Norka,
forcing them to fall on their faces and be robbed of everything.
The Germans, to whom their language and customs were unknown, had many different
stories to tell me about their adventures. Many were related to me. More than half of those yet
living have tales to tell and many still grieved over what had happened to them during such raids.
The strangest story told me was that the robbers, before making an attack would rst invite Gods
blessing on their plans. And after making the ceremonial Sign of the cross over face and breast,
commenced the robbery with thanks to God. They considered themselves very pious thieves!
The robbers werent accustomed to the fact that well-armed German travelers wouldnt
listen to or obey the robbers threats and demands but instead took up their weapons with intent
to kill. Often dead from both sides lay on the ground, but mostly robbers.
These robbers occasionally would ride through native villages with aming torches,
threatening to set everything on re, exacting great tribute from the local settlements. They
attempted to do the same in the German villages but the Germans offered strong resistance
instead of tribute, shooting and killing the robbers, often taking the robbers beautiful horses
and other possessions as booty.
It must be noted that these robbers never came on foot but always drove or rode. Also
they conducted their highway robberies only during daylight hours, apparently considering night
robberies mean and dishonest, not honorable. So it was safer for travelers to ride by night.
The most serious problem for the German colonists on the far side of the Volga River at
the present time is the lack of security from raids of the savages. These uncivilized hordes are
called the Kirghiz. There is little humanity in them. During Pugachevs time these barbarians
attacked and plundered both German and Russian villages on the east side of the Volga, kid-
napping anyone capable of doing slave labor for later sale in slave markets. Those remaining
were hacked to pieces. Even since Ive been here, these inhuman vagabonds have twice raided
villages on the other side.
The villages west of the Volga, such as our Huck, suffered much.
Houses were broken into at night and the limited supplies of food, cloth-
ing, and utensils were stolen. Horses so important for farm operations
and so difcult to replace were a frequent target. Daylight raids terrorized
the women and children when the men were out in the distant elds. It
became necessary to guard the villages constantly and carry weapons into
the elds. The lonely roads between the villages could be traveled safely
only in force. For many years, the Russian government took no action to
stop this menace.
More destructive than this was a rebellion that broke out in the Volga
region in 1773. It was mainly concerned with a Don Kosak who posed
as Peter III, and his followers robbed, pillaged, burned and murdered the
Volga region. They opened prisons, looted grain stores, killed government
ofcials, and destroyed a large section of Saratov, one of the rst commu-
nities settled by the Germans. It wasnt until 1775 that these rebel armies
were dispersed and Don Kosak was captured and executed.
The wide steppe was so full of wolves and other wild animals that the
men had always to be armed.
Another terror and the most fearful of all, were the Kalmucks and
Kirghiz. These Mongol tribes who occupied themselves with raising horses
and cattle, resented the newcomers establishing farms on land which they
considered their own. The Kalmucks contented themselves with occasional
thievery, but the Kirghiz were more warlike. Packs of Kirghiz outlaws
invaded the villages, robbing them of goods, money, and livestock.
Their attacks started as early as 1771 and continued for many years.
They robbed, destroyed, and killed without mercy, and carried off hundreds
of captives to the slave markets on the East. From one community in Au-
gust of 1774,two to three hundred (200-300) people were carried off into
slavery, including the parish priest. A brave band of one hundred and fty
(150) colonists under the leadership of a Lutheran pastor, set off with the
hope of freeing the captives but were captured, tortured and killed. Several
other villages were then attacked and their people, horses, cattle, and all
their movable property was carted off to the East.
Early in September 1774, a force of six hundred (600) men under Rus-
sian ofcers followed the Kurges eastward and managed to liberate eight
14
hundred and eleven (811) of the captive colonists. In October, additional
villages further south were attacked and three hundred and seventeen (317)
people carried away.
Two of the villages were so devastated that no effort was made to
rebuild them. In order to protect themselves , these German villages had to
become armed camps surrounded by walls and trenches manned at all times
by armed guards. As late as 1775, there were more attacks of force on the
villages; two villages were left in such shape that they were abandoned.
Eventually, the Russian government established forts in this area, and
brought the raids to an end. These attacks and other hardships of life on
the Volga had cut the 6,343 families that were in census in 1769, down to
6,175 in 1772; 5,858 In 1775; and 5,674 in 1785. Only after 1785 did life
become more peaceful and organized. They then prospered and became
agricultural pace-setters of Russia. Again, it is believed that Conrads great-
grandfather experienced or witnessed these occurrences.
Although efforts were made to Russiafy and assimilate the Germans
of the Volga, they maintained their identity and remained on their lands
throughout the tsar period. In spite of great odds and difculties, the colonies
the Germans built became models of agriculture and industry.
This story reveals a great deal about the hardy stock from which we
are descended. These people kept their own language, culture, and religion.
They eventually built factories, mills, hospitals and schools.
In one area to the south of the one in Saratov area village, the land had
an overpopulation of chipmunks. Every owner of the land had to deliver to
the district authorities 30 chipmunk tails each year. The extermination of
the chipmunks was especially difcult because the Russians living in the
nearby villages did not pay any attention to the chipmunks.
Interdenominational villages in Russia were rare, and fraternization
even among the various Protestant groups was not common. But despite
this tendency to avoid assimilation, there are some instances where Men-
nonites and Lutherans in Russia lived in the same village and the inevitable
marriages did take place.
According to Karl Stumpp, Slavnukha/Huck was started in 1767 by
380 people. By 1912 the population had increased to 9600. By 1926 the
count was 4921. Many suffered as a result of the revolution and famines.
Some died and others moved. Huck was about 42 miles south of Saratov,
the chief city of the Province of Saratov.
Here (Saratov), the Czarist government had set up the Immigration
and Settlement Ofces for Foreigners (namely the Germans of the Volga).
The supervisors
from these ofc-
es were subordi-
nate to the higher
officials of the
St. Petersburg
Headquart ers.
The Colonists
cal l ed t hem:
Des Deutsches
Kontor.
Mo s t o f
the Huck people
came from the
City of Darm-
stadt, Hessen,
Germany. After well over a years travels,our people arrived to a land
covered by tall grasses, shrub and scattered forest areas. Although the
annual rainfall was light, the soil was very fertile.
Their ability to survive and prosper in the alien atmosphere far from
their homeland is a testament to the truth of the Russian proverb, A Ger-
man is like a willow tree: stick him anywhere and he will take root and
ourish.
LIFE IN HUCK RUSSIA
TOLD BY Phillip Schleich Oct. 1980
Church school was the school. Their classes were religion, reading, writ-
ing and math, They sat on benches with the smartest at the beginning on down.
Phillip was number 1most of the time.
The Church was at the edge of town and the school was right in town.
The older kids started early in the morning with the younger children starting
at noon after it had warmed up some.
The Church had a knob instead of a cross. No work of any kind on Sunday
just church service. They had communion at special times during the year.
In winter the people lived in the town. One family lived under one roof
with the grandma in charge of house hold chores. She would tell her daughter-
in-laws what their chore is for the day. When a son got married they moved
into his family house. Also during the winter the men worked. Bohls and
Schleichs were carpenters and took their work to other towns or traded work.
They made cedar chests, fanning mills and xed wagons. Jake and John ran
looms to make material at home.
In the summer the families moved out to live on their land where they
farmed. They lived in tents in the eld;. The babies that had to be nursed went
to the elds with the mother. The small children too little to work stayed at
home with grandma and grandpa in town. The children big enough to work in
the elds went with the mother and father.
In the summer the farm animals went out to a pasture where a herder
watched all the animals. In the winter the animals were kept in town. The
animals were cows, sheep, hogs, ducks, geese and chickens. The crops they
raised were apples, sunowers, water melons, melons, cherrys, goose berries,
currents, carrots, green beans, wheat, vega hay, cabbage, potatoes, onions and
cucumbers. They had some good land here and some land that wasnt too good
some place else. Every body had the same kind of land but your land wasnt all
together. The government took 1 bushel per acre.
The town had an old dutch - wind mill and a our mill. Each one did their
own wheat. They washed it rst then ground the wheat. The man who ran the
mill got some of your our then he would sell it.
Every Sat. everyone cleaned, even the streets. The town was very clean,
There was snow on the ground all winter 4 to 6 feet deep.
They had to use sleds. They had a doctor but no hospital. Their holidays
were 3 days of Christmas with a Christmas tree, New Year, Easter and May
day. Weddings lasted 3 days.
When Germany was drafting young men of 21 into the army to ght
their wars Catherine the I (1643) of Russia promised the Germans land to
homestead. The government would give around 120 acres to every son born.
The Schleichs moved to Russia 75 miles SW of Saratov on the Volga River.
The town was all one religion of Christian Reform. The town was called Huck
Russia or (Splawnucha) in Russia.
Huck Russia was mountainous. It was very cold (42 below) in the winter
and very hot (90 to 100) in the summer. They raised sunowers for oil and
wheat. Their homes were in the town of Huck and when they went out to farm
they took tents with them to stay in. There was only one year they didnt raise any
crop, that was in 1831 because of a drought.
The Schleichs left Russia the same reason they left Germany Catherine
didnt live up to all she promised.
They left Huck Russia on May 1, 1907 went across Russia, across Poland to
Berlin, Germany to Bremerhaven by train.
Philipp Schleich went to school 2 years in Russia. While in Russia Katherine
Bohl went to the river to get a bucket of drinking water when Philipp threw some
mud in her bucket. Philipp moved to America at the age of 9.
HUCK 1993
In July 1993 I traveled to Russia and visited the former German vil-
lages: Beideck, Huck, Norka, Grimm, Brunnental, Marianburg, Wiesen-
16
muller, Gnadenthau, Katharinstadt, and Engels.
As we left Saratov and headed west I was struck by how much the
countryside reminded me of western Nebraska and Kansas. Rolling prairie
with trees dotted along infrequent creeks. No fences; village animal herds
are tended by shepherds. Paved highway gave way to dirt roads.
Upon our arrival in Huck we were told there was only one German
family living there now. Maria (family name KOCH) was born in Huck in
1925. She lived in a former German home on the edge of Huck with her
daughter, son in law, and their children.
When our van pulled up, her daughter was in the side yard hanging
laundry to dry. Maria was inside packing. Several huge bundles -sheets tied
up -of their possessions were already prepared It was a scene straight out
of history books -of the :peasants with their bundles and trunks entering
Ellis Island. Maria and her family were preparing to leave for Germany
and were due to depart in two days. In spite of all that she needed to do,
Maria graciously became our guide.
Maria told us that she is related to the Kindsvater family. (Just how was
never made clear .) August 29, 1941 they heard of the evacuation ( exhile
). On September 18, 1941 all in the village Huck were moved They were
loaded in cargo ( cattle) train cars and set off for Siberia. When they arrived
they found nothing and had to start from scratch. The Huck men worked
in the forest and the coal mines. Almost all died of hunger and cold. There
were many mass graves. From 1942 -46 Maria was at a work camp in the
Urals. She worked in the forest and the cement factory 12 hours per day.
There was little to eat and it was very cold. From 1946 through 1956
they were still held in Siberia. In 1956 some were a11owed to move back
to the Volga. In 1958 Maria married her current husband (Russian) and in
1980 they came to Huck.
We found the home of the aunt (Lydia STRAUSS) of one of our tour
members. Lydia STRAUSS was a teacher. This house is at least 90 years
old A Russian family living in it now let us tour the house. A very typical
German house, but denitely Russian standards of cleanliness in 1993 and
very dilapidated condition. Most of the homes still standing in Huck were
of German origin, however Maria estimated that fully half of the original
village was gone.
In 1913 the rst election was held in the old church. In 1933 the Gov-
ernment closed the church. It later became many things including a dance
hall (which brought bitter tears to Marias eyes as she related this to us).
It burned in 1980. The Kino Theater now stands just behind the site of the
church- built 8 years ago. Some of the old churchyard fence sii11 stands,
but the site of the church is nothing more than a parking lot.
The old German prayer house/school still stands and is used by the
Government.
Next door is the old schoolmasters house. We saw the old school
where the teachers once lived It was built in 1910 and later enlarged to use
as classrooms. Now it is the ofce of the Sovhkolz.
As you know, Stalin had the granite and marble cemetery monuments
of the
German villages removed to Moscow to build the Metro (subway).
The Russians are burying their dead on top of our unmarked graves. Huck
was the worst of all we saw.
The yard of the cemetery is rolling waves... where our ancestors rest.
When Russian spades hit the bones of our people they simply keep right
on digging and ing the bones to the four winds. The cemetery at Huck is
littered with our bones. This was very hard to accept, especially because
I have family buried there. This summarizes what it left of Huck. We saw
very few people and little activity.
Most of the men were out in the elds. With Marias departure to
Germany, there are no longer Germans living in Huck to my knowledge.
Russian families live in the German houses, many of which are falling
down around their ears from lack of upkeep. I was lled with incredible
joy at walking the streets of my Great Grandfathers birthplace. Yet the joy
had to struggle to overcome the feelings of despair and sadness I felt as I
witnessed the tragic hand that fate had dealt our Huck.
Sue Kottwitz
Rt 1 Box 50
Falcon, MO 65470-9734 417-668-5746
17
18
AHSGR HUCK MAP
SURNAMES OF COLONISTS
HUCK MAP MORE LIKELY 1775 CENSUS 1798 CENSUS
Alderdorn (?) O O
Alt Alt X X
Beidniz Beidnitz O O
Beidnitz Beidnitz O O
Bender Bender O O
Bohl Bohl O X
Dietz Dietz X X
Eckerdt Eckert X X
Euler Eiler X X
Frick Frick X X
Gebhard Gebhard/Gephardt X X
Geyer Geier X X
Hausch Hausch O O
Hedinger Hettinger O O
Heidenreich Heidenreich X X
Hein Hein X X
Hempel Hempel O X
Herdt Herdt X X
Hergenrader Hergenrader X X
Herdenreder Hergenrader X X
Hergenreter Hergenrader X X
Hixt Hicks/Hickst X X
Huck Huck X X
Jakoby Jakoby/Jacobi O O
Kempel Kempel X X
Kemscheidt (?) O O
Kindsvater Kindsvater X X
Knaub Knaub O O
Koch Koch X X
Kohler Kohler O O
Konrady Konrad (?) O X
Kreik Kreick X X
Leichner Leichner O X
Leinschmidt Leneschmidt X X
Lenschmid Leneschmidt X X
Likay Lechai O X
Lind Lind O O
Loos Loos O O
Luther Luther O X
Magel Magel O O
Michel Michel X X
Morgel Morkel X X
Morkel Morkel X X
Nazarenus Nazarenus O O
Neu Neu X X
Niederhaus Niederhausen O X
Niederqwell Niederquell O O
Protzmann Brotzmann X X
Rau Rau X X
Ritter Ritter X X
Ruppel Ruppel O O
Sack Sack X X
Schaf Schaaf O O
Schafer Schafer X X
Schlegel Schlagel X X
Schleigh Schleich X X
Schlodthauer Schlotthauer X X
Schlothauer Schlotthauer X X
Schneider Schneider X X
Schnell Schnell O O
Schuckmann Schuckmann X X
Schuddheis Schultheis X X
Schuldeis Schultheis X X
Schwabauer Schwabauer X X
Sittner Sittner O X
Sterkel Storkel O O
Strauch Strauch X X
Urbach Urbach O O
Volker Volker X X
Wacker Wacker O O
Waldugard (?) O O
Weber Weber X X
Weigandt Weigand/Weigandt X X
Weisgerber Weis(s)gerber X X
Weiss Weiss O O
Wilhelm Wilhelm X X
Zitterkopf Zitterkopf X X
X=YES
O=NO
J. EICHHORN
30.Oct.2000
19
Huck 1904 or so. Largest quantitiy of same names Michel 28, Eckerdt 27. Over 440 residences on map. HUCK (Rssn. Name: Splawnucha) Kan-
ton: Balzer, Wolost: Norka. Founded in 1767 by 380 Lutherans. Founded in 1767 by 380 Lutherans. It was located on the west side of the Volga
River (Bergseite), B-4 quadrant of Stumpp map #6. The 1887s are from Die Welt Pst, 7 Sept. 1939, p. 8, as given by Mr. P. H. Hein
of Harvard, Nebr. He writes, I have been in America since1887 but I can still call the names and have done what I could, -in a letter to Jacob Volz.
NAME # NAME # Year: Population:
ALDLERDORN 1 LIKAY / LIKAY J 6 1788 570
ALT/ALDT & 1887 4 LIND 1 1796 643
BECKER - 1887 LOFING & 1887 1 1816 1209
BAEKERT * LOOS 2 1834 2120
BEIDNITZ 2 LUTHER 5 1850 3491
BENDER 1 MAGEL 1 1857 4241
BEYER 1 MICHEL/MICHAEL 2 28 1860 4328
BIRKHEIM 1 * MORGEL 3 1886 5191
BOHL 5 15 MORKEL 1 1891 7384
BROTZMAN 7 - 1887 MORKER & 1887 1894 7309
DIETZ & 1887 9 NAZARENUS 1 1897 9169
BERHART * NEU & 1887 9 1910 9433
ECKERDT 27 NIEDERHAUS/NIEDERHAUSE 2 1887 10 1912 9600
EISHER 1 * NIEDERQWELL 1 1926 4921
ERBES * PFENNING & 1887
EULER, P & 1887 4 POST 1 * Maiden name of an
FRICK & 1887 10 PROTZMANN 14 Eckerdts wife. Not
GEBHARD 1 RAU 6 necessarily a native
GEBHARDT 1 RITTER 5 Huck name.
GEYER/GEIER & 1887 13 ROTHER & 1887
GEIR2/GEYER/GEIER & 1887 RUPPEL 1 The numbers follow-
ing GRICK, J 1 SACK 2 & 1887 5
immediately after the HAMPEL 1
SCHAER 1 name are the HARDT 1 SCHAF,
G/SCHAAF 1 & 1887 4 quantities of girls who HAUSCH, L 1 & 1887 4
SCHAFER/SCHAEFER & 1887 an Anna m Phil 9 married Eckerdts
HEDINGER 1 SCHLEGEL/SCHLAEGEL & 1887 Eckerdt 6 1700s-1859.
HEIDENREICH & 1887 3 SCHLEICH 1 & 1887 but not on
HEIN & 1887 11 SCHKEUCG\HE 1 * 1700s Census. Credit for contribuity
HEINDRETHA 1 * SCHLEGEL 1 * & a Konrad Schafer is due to
several HEMPEL 1 & 1887 7 SCHOENHALS 1 *
m Antons dau. Anna This list is due to HERDT/HERD & 1887 6
SCHLIIDDHEIS 1 AGRS & Jacob
HERGENBAUER 5 SCHLOTTHAUER 2 & 1887 4 Eichorn.
HIXT 4 SCHNEDER 3 21
HERGENREDER - 1887 SCHNELL 1 38 Eckerdt girls
HUCK 2 & 1887 20 SCHUCKMANN, A 1 married
HOHL - 1887 SCHULDEIS/SCHULTHEIS & 1887 9 Eckerdts & other
KARK 1 * SCHUTZMANN & 1887 names. Some
KEIL 1 * SCHWABAUER/SCHWABAUR 1&1887 3 variations in
JACOBY 2 SITTNER 4 & 1887 13 spellings according
KEMPEL 1 STERKEL/STOERKEL 1 * & 1887 8 to Dr. Pleve.
KEMSCHEIDT 1 STRAUCH & 1887 1
KEMSCHNITER 1 URBACH 1 There are around
KINDSVATER 2 & 1887 15 VOLKER/VOELKER 4 & 1887 4 442 households on
KNAUB 1 WACKER, J 2 the Huck map
KOCH 1 & 1887 A Peter md Antons dau. 13 WALDUGARD 1
KOHLER 11 WEBER & 1887 9
KONRAD/KNRAD 1 WEIGANDT/WEIGAND & 1887 3
KREIK 1 & 1887 11 WEISGERBER & 1887 4
KUNZMANN 1 * WILHELM & 1887 2
LEICHNER 3 & 1887 9 WOLKER 1
LEINSCHMIDT 3 WUKKERT 1 *
LICKEI 1 * ZITTERKOPF & 1887 7
6% of the houses were Eck-
erdts.
6%x9600=576 Eckerdt cousins
20
Dear Dr. Pleve: 10-20-2000
I wish to engage you to chart my Eckerdt family from Huck, Volga.
I only know as far back as my great grandfather Conrad (born about
1825) who married Annie Marie Shafer, had at least 4 boys: Conrad,
John, Jacob and Peter, moved to Neuheim on the Kuban and from there,
all but Conrad came here to the U. S. with the name Eckerdt instead of
Eckert.
Other Ruck Eckerdt fragments we know of are:
2. Oswald born about 1887 had Jegor, Barwell, Anna, Krat, Elizabeth,
Amkried and Jacob born 1900 in Huck who married Katherina or Eliza-
beth Sack.
Jacob fathered Marie, Emile born 1929, Elvira born 1936, Victor born
1944 in Kazakhstan, Johannes born 1949 in Kazakhstan and Alexander
born 1938 in Ruck married Elenora.
4 or 5 known survivors are in Germany since 1995 and I remains in
Kazakhstan,
The rest of these fragments have survivors I know here in U.S.:
3. George Phillip and Margaret Sacke born 1867 and 1870. Their 10 or
more children were born in Argentina from 1892 to 1914 & U.S.
This family is now of course quite large and at least one has expressed
strong interest in learning of our roots and how we are related.
4. Phillip born 1887 married Elizabeth Ritter in Huck and had children in
U.S.
5. Phillip born 1887 married Mrs Frank Newbower came to U.S. in 1910
or 11.
6. Phillip Oswald born 1872 married Christina Wagner. They birthed
Elizabeth born 1900, Johannes 1904, Benjamin 1904 and went to Argen-
tina in 1907. Phillips great-grandson, Claudio, contacted me in 1995
about our roots.
7. John born 1860 in Russia M. Eliz. Ritter and parented in Huck: Phil-
lip born 1886 married Anna Schalabauer 1908 parented Elizabeth Kath
born 1910 Huck.
And then, I decided to ask for the below:
Dear Dr. Pleve: 5-12-01
I wish to purchase from you if possible anything to do with Eckerdts
from Huck such as
1845-149 Church Records
1850 Huck Census
1857 Huck Census
1889-1921 Birth Records
1907-1921 Marriage Records
1907-1921 Death Records
and any other records that are now available other than those named in
the list above, such as 1777-1845 Church Records & Church books 1854-
1917.
Huck Eckerts to about 1859
Dear Ron,
We have prepared the information on a surname Eckhardt. She(it) is given in the joined
(attached) le.
Sincerely,
Igor and Ludmila Pleve
Eckerdt (Huck colony)
Eckerdt Johannes,25.12.1777 - +1851
w.l Christina Schoefer,28.11.1778 (Shafer) married ?.02.1798
1s. Johann Georg,8.11.1801
w. Anna Maria Weishgerber,5.05.1806 married ?.01.1823
d.Maria,26.10.1829
Catharina,21.09.1839
Charlotte,10.12.1846
2s. Johann Oswald,27.09.1819
w.Catharina Weishgerber,13.12.1817 married ?.02.1838
d.Elisabeth.16.07.1843
Catharina,10.12.1846
Margaretha,1853
Charlotte,1855
s.Johannes,27.06.1839
Jacob,18.06.1841
Johann Georg,10.03.1845
Oswald,25.01.1848 - +1852
Caspar,1850
3s. Johannes,1.1.0.1823
w. Catharina Weishgerber,7.05.1825 married 31.01.1844
d.Anna Margaretha,28.08.1847
Elisabeth,1852
Anna Maria,1857
s.Georg,1850
Johannes,1854
1 br. Johann Lorenz,28.02.1770 - +4.07.1840
w. Anria Margaretha Huck,3.02.1773 -+after 1857 rnarried 3.03.1793
1s. Oswald,29.12.1196
w. Elisabeth Frick,12.11.1794 married 12.02.1819
s.l. Johann Conrad,6.06.1.816 -+10.04.1839
w. Charlotte Schaaf,4.07.1816 married 3.01.1835
d.Christina,26.07.1837
Catharina,29.07.1839
s.Philipp,24.09.1835
2.Oswald,24.10.1829 -+1851
w. Charlotte Schlotthauer,5.08.1830
s.Georg,9.10.1848 - + in childhood
3. Georg,-7.08.1832
w. Charlotte,1831
d.Elisabeth,1852
s.Georg,1854
Heinrich,1856
2s. Johannes,24.06.1816
w. Catharina Michael,7.03.1815 married 3.01.1835
2 br. Conrad,9.10.1779- + after 1857
w. Dorothea Schoefer,5.03.1781married 7.04.1803
1s. Johann Georg,22.03.1803
w. Anna Alt,25.09.1804 - +15.1.0.1836 married 29.01.1825
s.Philipp,23.05.1826
2s. Johann Philipp,15.07.1805
2w. Catharina Elisabeth Sittner, nee Herdt,1810 married 30.01.1844
s.l. Philipp,16.01.1836
w. - ?
s.Georg,1857
2. Johannes,2.09.1846
3. Heinrich,14.08.1848
4. Oswald,1851
3s.Georg Philipp,12.10.1809
w. Margaretha Brotzmann.13.10.1811 married 7.01.1832
d.Barbara,30.09.1837
Charlotte,19.07.1844
s.Oswald,11.05.1841
Conrad,13.06.1847
Georg,1851
4s.Johann Conrad,30.07.1811 - +1851
w. Catharina Neu,16.06.1815 married 1.02.1834
s.Johann Ludwig,23.02.1834
5s. Johann Lorenz,27.07.1813
w. Elisabeth Schleicher from Norka colony,2.04.1819 married 27.01.1838
d.Catharina,8.02.1847
Anna Maria,1849 ? (1850)
Barbara,1854
s.Philipp,5.07.1844
Jacob,1857
6s. Johann Oswald,12.05.1822
w. Elisabeth Herchenroeher,2.11.1822 married 31.01.1844
Eckerdt Johann Jacob,20.03.1804
w. Anna Maria Euler,27.01.1801 married 1-8.01.1823
1s. Johann Jacob,20.04.1829
w. Eva Elisabetli Weigandt,20.11.1829
s.l. Johannes,30.08.1849 - + in childhood
2.Philipp, 1851
3. Johannes,1853
4. Jacob,1855
2s. Johannes,27.10.1836
w. Elisabeth,1836
s.Johannes,1857
3s.Johann Georg,13.01.1841
br. Johannes,7.08.1810
w. Catharina Euler,24.04.1811 married 19.02.1831
d.Barbara,20.12.1835
Catharina,10.03.1840 - + in childhood
Catharina Elisabeth,22.08.1846
1s. Johannes,22.11.1832
w. Jeanetta.1832
d.Barbara,1851
Elisabeth,1854
s.Johannes,1857
2s.Georg,23.03.1838
w. Elisabeth,1838
3s.Johann Peter,l.09.1842
4s.Oswald,l4.12.1844
5s.Jacob,29.12.1848
21
Eckerdt Johann Philipp,l774 +7.02.1834
w. Maria Elisabeth Weishgerber,18.01.1775
1s. Jacob,.3.10.1801
2w. Magdalena Brotzmann, nee Leichner,12.12.1806
d.Charlotte,27.03.1835
Margaretha,6.05.1837
Magdalena,16.12.1841
Eva Elisabeth,16.07.1848 -+in childhood
Catharina,1853
s.l.Johann Conrad,6.10.1825
w. Elisabeth Schneider,1825
d.Margaretha,1849 ? (1850)
s.Johann Adam,16.08.1847 -+ in childhood
Johannes,16.07.1848 -+ in childhood
Philipp,1852
2. Johannes,12.11.1829
w. Anna Maria,1830
s.Conrad,1852
Jacob,1854
Johannes,1857
3.Georg,24.09.1844
4.Johann Oswald,3.09.1846
5.Jacob,1851
2s. Johann Georg,7.06.1808
w. Barbara Schultheihs,15.02.1812 rnarried 31.01.1829
s.l.Conrad,22.11.1830
w. Elisabeth,1830
d.Margaretha,1849 ? (1850)
Anna Maria,1851
Elisabeth,1853
s.Jacob,1857
2.Johann Adam,23.06.1833
w. Margaretha,1832
d-Maria Elisabeth,1853
Margaretha,1857
s.Lorenz,1855
3. Lorenz,9.08.1835
w. Susanna,1837
4. Jacob,22.03.1837
w. Elisabeth,1836
5. Johann Georg,7.03.1841
6. Johann Peter,31.10.1844
7. Philipp,3.06.1847 - +1853
8. Johannes,1851
9. Georg Philipp,1853
3s. Johannes,22.03.1810
w. Justina Auguste Wacker,17.11.1812 rnarried 18.02.1832
d.Elisabeth,24.07.1842
s.l.Johannes,17.12.1834
w. Barbara,1834
d.Elisabeth,1853
s.Adam.1855
2. Jacob,30.12.1839
3. Georg Philipp,3.11.1845
1.br.Johann Peter,16.11.1778 -+11.10.1843
w. Elisabeth Weishgerber,4.06.1877 married 18.04.1799
1s.Johann Melchior,24.01.1803
w.Catharina Hausch,22.10.1805 married 26.12.1825
d.Elisabeth,31.05.1844
s.l. Johann Peter.15.11.1831
w. Catharina,1834
s.Philipp,1857
2.Johann Conrad,29.12.1833
w. Anna Maria,1833
d.Catharina,1857
s.Jacob,1854
3.Philipp,7.08.1837
4.Johannes,11.04.1840
5.Jacob,21.10.1849 -+ in childhood
2s. Johann Adam,18.09.1807
w. Catharina Sack.4.02.1812 married 6.02.1830
d-Eva Catharina,15.11.1844
s.l. Jacob,11.07.1830
w. Sophia,1829
s.Johannes,1850 ? (1851)
Conrad,1854
Oswald,1856
2.Johannes,9.08.1833
w. Anna Maria,1832
d.Barbara, 1857
3.Georg,8.02.1836
4.Oswald,16.03.1.839 - +1852
5.Johann Adam,7.01.1842
6.Philipp,1.01.1847 -+1852
7.Johann David,29.07.1849 -+l850
3s. Johann Jacob,19.02.1821
4w. Catharina Voelcker,4.12.1820 married 9.01.1841
d.Anna Maria,19.06.1841
Rosina,29.07.1849
Catharina,1852
s.Georg Michael,22.03.1844
Johannes,4.04.1847
Jacob,1854
Adam,1856
2 br. Conrad,1780, Before 1811 he moved to Niedermonjou colony (brother to Johann
Peter b.1778)
3 br. Johannes,31.05.1786 -+25.12.1834
w. Maria Elisabeth Heffner,21.03.1791 married 18.01.1808
d.Elisabeth,8.06.1809
h.Johannes Wilhelm.26.08.1808 - +1852 married 17.02.1827
4 br. Heinrich,18.09.1788
w. Maria Elisabeth Schlotthauer,28.0l.1790 -+18.05.1835 married 9.02.1809
1s.Johann Wilhelm,15.03.1815
w.Catharina Elisabeth Bender from Kratzke colony,3.12 married 20.11.1841
d.Elisabeth Margaretha,1847
s.Johannes,1857
2s.Johann Jacob,1.08.1820
w. Magdalena Herdt,10.04.1820
s.Philipp,1857
3s.Johann Ernst,26.04.1822
w. Dorothea, 1827
d.Eleonora Elisabeth,1852
s.Philipp,1855
Jacob,1857
4s. Johann Philipp,4.11.1828
w. Maria Catharina Herdt,7.03.1834
d.Anna Maria,1857
s.Jacob,1855
5s. Johann Adam,21.01.1832 -+1851
From above list: Senior parents. The following 8 were able to be connect-
ed as Antons grandchildren by using Huck Census and FGR.
1. Johannes 177 & Christ Schoefer 1778 = 3 children
bro
2. Johan Lorenz 1770 and Anna Marg Huck 1773 =
bro
3. Conrad 1779 and Dorothea Schoefer 1781 = at least 4 children
I havent seen any evidence of how the following two are connected:
Johann Jacob 1804 and Anna Maria Euler 1801 = 3 children
bro
Johannes 1810 and Catharina Euler 1811 = 6 children
4. Johann Philipp 1774 and Maria Elij. Weishgerber 1775 = several
children.
bro
5. Johann Peter 1778 and Eliz. Weishgerber 1877 = at least 3 children
(ours)
bro
6. Conrad 1770 moved to Niedermoujou
bro
7. Johannes 1786 and Maria Eliz. Heffner 1791 = at least 1 child
bro
8. Heinrich 1788 and Maria Elz. Schlotthauer 1790 = 5 children
A list somewhat similar to this was sent showing Eckerts after 1887. Since
our Konrad & children left Huck for the Kuban in (probably) the 1880s, this
chart (in March, 2002) remains as it was sent. (Similar to the preceeding
without the sizeable indentations). Konrad would have had brothers and
sisters who remained in Huck. Without the post-1858 records, we can now
only guess what one or two names may have been but have no continuity to
tie these nor other Eckerdts to the pre-1858 list and chart.
I began to construct a tree/chart from the 1888-1920 lists but no parentage of
the fathers is mentioned, making for much clue seeking and guess work.
22
23
24A
24B
26
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Chart III
27
ECKERTS FIRST NAMES PRE-1859
ONE ADAM 1855
ONE CASPER 1850
ONE CONRAD 1830
8 GEOG 1826-1854
3 HEINRIECH 1848-1888
12 JACOBS 1801-1857
18 JOHANN 1770-1846
ALL WITH MIDDLE NAMES
INCLUDING ADAM,
CONRAD,
GEO, JACOB, LORENZ,
OSWALD
PHILIPP
20 JOHANNES 1779-1859
5 JOHNS 1803-1833
ALL WITH MIDDLE NAMES
INCLUDING BELER,
CONRAD, MELCHERON,
PETER
2 LORENZ 1835-1855
4 OSWALD 1829-1851
7 PHILIPP 1835-1857

Maiden names of wives of Eckerdts prior to 1860:
Alt, Anna 1836
Bender, Catharina Eliz. 1815
Bratzmann, Magdalena 1806, Margaretha 1811
Euler, Anna Maria 1801, Anna Maria 1811
Frick, Elizabeth 1794
Georg, Charlotte 1831
Hausch, Catharina 1805
Heffner, Maria Eliz 1791
Herchenroeher, Elizabeth 1822
Herdt, Magdalena 1820, Maria Catharina 1834
Huck, Anna Margretha 1773
Michael, Catharina 1815
Neu, Catharina 1815
Sack, Catharina 1812
Schaef, Charotte 1816
Schaefer, Christina 1778, Dorothea 1781
Schleicher, Elizabeth 1819
Schlotthauer, Charlotte 1830, Maria Eliz 1835
Schneider, Eliz 1825
Schultheihs, Barbara 1812
Sittner, Catharina Elizabeth 1810
Voelcker, Catharina 1812
Wacker, Justina Auguste 1812
Weigandt, Eva Elisabeth 1829
Weighgerber, Anna Maria 1806. Catharina 1817
Weishgerber, Maia Eliz 1775. Eliz 1877
Maiden names married Eckerdts after 1887:
Baeker, Anna Maria
Birkheim, Maria Catharina
Brotzmann, Anna Margaretha, Elisabeth, Jeanette, Anna
Margartha, Jeanette, Elisabeth, Charlott
Bohl, Anna Maria
Eberhardt, Sophia
Eckerdt, Maria Elisabeth, Catharina, Catharina Elisa-
beth, Charlotte, Eva Catharina, Maria Elisabeth, Eva
Catharina, Charlotte, Magdalena, Catharina, Catharina
Elisabeth, Eva Elisabeth, Charlotte, Catharina, Catha-
rina, Elisabeth, Maria Catharina, Catharina Elisabeth,
Elenora Elisabeth, Anna Maria, Catharina, Elisabeth,
Catharina Margaretha, Anna Maria, Maria Catharina,
Margaretha, Elisabeth, Anna Maria, AMalie, Amalie,
Olga, Nee, Magdalena, Catharina Elisabeth, Anna Mar-
garetha, Charlotte
Eisher, Maria Elisabeth
Erbes, Catharina Elisabeth
Geir, Mararetha, Catharina
Hausch, Barbara
Heindretha, Elisabeth
Hempel, Anna Margaretha
Huck, Charlotte, Catharina
Jacoby, Maria Catharina
Kark, Frida
Keil, Sophia
Kindsvater, Elisabeth, Amalie
Koch, Elisabeth
Kreick, Margaretha
Kunzmann, Elisabeth
Leichner, Anna Margaretha, Catharina Elisabeth, Catha-
rina
Lickei, Hannetta
Lind, Anna Catharina
Luther, Catharina Margaretha
Michael, Catharina, Elisabeth, Margaretha
Neu, Margaretha
Niederhaus, Anna Maria, Elisabeth
Sack, Anna Margaretha, Elisabeth
Schleich, Charlotte
Schleicher, Catharina
Schlegel, Anna Margaretha
Schneider, Maria Catharina, Catharina Elisabeth, Catharina
Elisabeth
Scwabaur, Anna Maria
Sither, Catharina, Charlotte, Elisabeth, Elisabeth
Schaef, Elisabeth Catharina
Schlotthauer,
Schlotthaur, Elisabeth, Catharina Elisabeth
Schneider, Catharina Maria, Elisabeth
Schoenhals, Amalie
Schwabauer, Anna Margaretha
Stoerkel, Maria Catharina
Voelcker, Anna Margarehta, Elisabeth, Catharina Marga-
retha, Elisabeth
Wukkert, Catharina
28
Antons children on chart 1: unless mentioned, these are on both FGR and
census. None were from Dr. Pleve. However their children were (as shown
on Dr. Pleves chart) were the same as from the FGR & census.
1. Johann Peter 1758 and Kat. Schwab. 1757. Also on FGR. I didnt see it
in census.
2. Johann Heinrich 1753 and Anna Eichhorn.
3. Conrad 1742 and Anna Kuhl 1745
4. Anna E. 1743 and Conrad Schaefer 1733. Also on FGR. I didnt see it in
census.
5. Philipp George 1748 and Anna Eliz. Schaefer
6. Johannes 1746 and Anna Kat. Keim 1742 a Johannes 1744 and Kat. Keim
found on census but not on FGR is probably the same.
7. Anna Marg. 1743 and Phil. Rau 1743. Also on FGR. I didnt see it in
census.
8. Eliz. 1750 and Jacob Schuknian 1747
9. Johann Jacob 1741 retarded.
10. Anna Kat. 1741 and Peter Kock 1727
11. Anna Maria 1737 and Johannes Schlotthauer 1744. On FGR but not seen
on census
It would seem as if at least 9 of these would be Antons children, if not all. It
is possible that one or 2 could be nephews or nieces.
Our Anton Eckert family as they all appeared in the Huck 1775 and 1798
census: (contributed by Jacob Eichorn)
1. Anna Maria, h. Johannes Schlotthauer
2. Anna Catharine, h. Peter Koch
3. Johann Jacob (retarded, lives with brother Johannes)
4. Anna Margarethe, h. Philipp Rau
5. Johannes, w. Anna Katharina Keim
(father Anton li\,es with son Johannes)
6. Philipp Georg, w. Anna Elisabeta Schaefer
(no children listed)
7. Anna Elisabeta, h. Konrad Schaefer
8. Johann Heinrich, w. Anna Margaretha Eichhorn
9. Johann Peter, w. Katarina Schaab
Antons wife seems to have died before the 1775 census.
The eldest son, Johann Georg, doesnt appear in the two Huck census
reports. He may have stayed in Germany and not gone to Russia.
It would seem that our lineage ties in with either #5, 8, or 9.
Three additional turned up from other sources.
Huck Eckerts in both 1775 and 1798 census:
Elizabeth, Johannes, Konrad, Peter and Phillip. Johann Hinrich was
the only name listed in 1775 but not in 1798. Additional names in 1798
not on 1775 list were: Eva Elizabeth who may have gone to the village
of Anton, Katrina, two Ana Marias, 2 Elizabetas, Hinrich, and another
Johannes.
If Anton arrived with the very rst colonists from Germany, he
would not have rst settled at Huck (at least Huck being a village), since
Huck was not established as a village until 1767. There were only 4
years (1763-1767 of emigration from Germany. There were a number of
villages in existance before Huck.
Note: Married names of Eckerdt girls &/or their daughters, and/or
their Eckerdt, husbands names prior to 1859:
Brotzman, Rigina-married son of Anna Schlotthauer
Brotzman, Katherina-Daughter of Anna Koch; married Konrad.
Euler, Maria
Geier, Anna Margareta-Daughter of Anna Koch; married John Geo.
Raigen, Anna Maria-(Mrs. Peter)
Rau, Anna Margaretha-(Mrs. Philipp)
Schaefer/Schafer, Anna-(Mrs. Konrad)
Schlotthauer, Anna Maria
Schuckman, Elizbeta-(Mrs. Jacob)
Weigandt, El
Wilhelm, Eliz.-(Mrs. John)
The Caucasus, where our Eckerdts went in about 1885: In
1821, Russian conquests there were incomplete. Nickolas I thought
that Mongolia and other borderlands were too weak to maintain
their own independence and must be conquered, annexed and their
multitudinous peoples thrown into a melting pot with existing
Ukranians, Finns, Tartars, Lithuanians, Letts, Esthonians, Swedes,
Mongols, and countless smaller eastern tribes to turn into Russian
citizens, renouncing their own pasts and cultural inheritance. Jews
were to either be assimilated or deported to Asia Minor. Gypsies
could either become Orthodox Christians and settle down like good
peasants or get out.
North Caucasus was inhabited by several Asiatic tribes of the
Mohammed religion during the late 1700s-on. Then there are many
branches of the Finno-Tartar family, from the Karelians of the Finn-
ish border to the Samoyeds of the frozen north and the Chuvashes
of the banks of the Volga. They have rather at faces, high cheek
bones and pronounced jaws. The Tartars themselves are dark and
short people, Asiatic in type.
Tartar blood, however, is so widespread in Russia that there
is a saying, Scratch a Russian and nd a Tartar. The nomadic,
cattle-raising Khirgiz, roaming the steppes, are also of Tartar stock.
Another nomad tribe extending deep into Asia are the Kalmucks,
a pure Mongol type with slanting eyes like the Chinese. In the far
northeast dwell primitive tribes such as the Chukchi, who resemble
the Eskimos and Indians of the north, lending color to the belief
that America was peopled from Asia. Nickolas I wanted only one
category of citizen: Russian and all to be equal under law.
There were no stage-coaches in Russia at any time - before
or after railways to cover those vast areas. But all along the very
sparse and poor main roads there was an organized system of posting
stations which combined primitive and often verminous accomo-
dation with points for changing horses. The common conveyance
was a cart without springs in the summer which had only the seat
for driver. The famous young Count Leo Tolstoy travelled in one
of those from Kazan to the Caucasus in 1849, three years before
Peter Geyer was born. This journey is described in the rst page
of a book: The Cossacks, which is good reading. More frequent
yet was a two-seat carriage on wheels in summer, runners in winter
which was very fast. These were Russian units. Likely, the Germans
brought other ideas with them.
Russia, so vast with poor communications, was governed in
theory by a highly centralized bureacracy with absolute author-
ity; so any hope of good government would depend on individual
qualities of provincial chieftains. These were neither vested with
a dened measure of responsible government or bound by a code,
so awkward decisions created uncertainty which favored tyranny
over law. Absolute repression was imposed with minimum statu-
tory prohibition. Nicholas carried an image of stability in his early
rein. This paralleled high patriotism which turned into violent
chauvinism when affronted by greedy Persians, scheming Turks,
turbulent Caucasian tribesmen and rebellious Poles. In about 1850
Leo Tolstoy joined the army in the Caucasus to ght a colonial war
against Moslem tribesmen.
The famous Cossacks of the steppes east of the river Don are
of mixed blood - Slav, Tartar and Mongol.
Some peoples of the Caucasus have been considered typical of
the whole white race, which is therefore often called the Caucasian.
The Circassians, for example, are a tall, handsome people of noble
bearing. There were many Jews in Russia, especially in the towns of
White Russia and the Ukraine. A large territory in Asiatic Russia has
been set aside for settlement by Jews. It is called Biro-Bidjan.
30
31
Reasons for Emigration
Given here are a few reasons why Conrad and others left Huck and
other villages.
The Volga German population in 1869 was 259,000, which is slightly
over ten times the founding population of 1769. The land owned however,
had only tripled.
In the Volga region there existed the so-called Mir system in which
no land was held in private, but instead was held in ownership as com-
munity land -meaning that land did not belong to the private individual
but to the village community. This resulted in a division of the community
land among individual farmers every three to seven years, and each farmer
worked the land assigned to him. Because of the high birth rate of the Volga
Germans, the community land could no longer support the population - that
is, the sons growing up in the region. New lands had to be obtained for
these young men.
In the Black Sea region, the right of the heir (Erbhofrecht) to the yard
was the system of land transfer within the family. The original land units
granted the settlers, a half an enterprise of about 30 desjatines or a full en-
terprise of 60 desjatines land, could not be sold but instead, the oldest son
inherited the unit (Majoritatsrecht). The farmers other sons were without
land, and so it became imperative that they too come into possession of
land or inherited yards (Erbhofen).
In the Volga as in the Black Sea region the village fathers felt obligated
to acquire new land for their sons who were without it. To this end, the vil-
lage fathers established a tax on themselves to develop a community fund
for the purchase of new land (Gemeindekassen fur die Beschaffung von
Neuland). Often large sums of money were accumulated for this purpose.
As soon as enough money deemed sufcient had accumulated for land pur-
chases, the community sent so-called scouts or land-seekers (Kundschafter
oder Landsucher) to remote areas to determine suitability of land and its
availability for purchase. In this manner some who would otherwise have
been landless started new villages (daughter colonies). In this manner, the
land near and at distant places from the mother colonies was purchased.
Likewise, large areas of land were purchased in the North Caucasus and a
large number of daughter colonies came into existence.
The Germans became dominating landowners. One German put it this
way, in the 1870s, which were probably the best years for the settlers; A
German peasant wandered all his life from one estate to another, but always
from a smaller to a larger one. His property grew steadily, starting from 270
acres, then to 700 acres then 1,400, then 2,700 acres and more.
Additionally the so-called land-hunger drove many individual farmers
from the Black Sea region to the North Caucasus, there to purchase land
for their many sons. This practice of buying land was possible because of
its relatively low price in the North Caucasus, being three times and more
lower than in the mother colonies. As an example, in 1912 in the Crimea a
desjatine land cost 300 to 700 rubles, depending upon its condition. At the
same time in the North Caucasus the price was 50 to as high as 150 rubles,
depending upon how primitive the area.
There were several cases in which farmers in the Crimea sold their land
for 600 rubles per desjatine and bought land in the North Caucasus for 50 to
100 rubles per desjatine. Thus they could increase their land holdings from
six to twelve times their former holdings. A farmer selling the 100 desjatines
in the Crimea could purchase 600 to 1200 desjatines in the North Caucasus.
As it was each fathers goal to endow each of his own sons with at least as
much land at his death as he himself had been provided by his father, land
transactions took on large importance and meanings. Many German farmers
sold their nice and well-developed(stately) agricultural enterprises in South
Russia to go to the North Caucasus and begin a new farming enterprise
with its many difculties, because this was an opportunity to increase their
land holdings six-fold or more, and thereby provide a means for each of
the sons for a certain and sufcient existence.
Further, many farmers immigrated to the North Caucasus because of
religious and freedom of thought reasons. Especially the pious brothers
and Pietists who were not satised with the piety of their fellow citizens
and village residents, believed that in the far-away districts of the North
Caucasus they would be distant enough from all vexations of the evil
foes, and that they could then pursue their own religious beliefs and prac-
tices without interference. Among those who immigrated were the Moravian
Brethren, Templars (Knights-Templars or Jerusalem Friends), Mennonites,
Evangelical Christians, Baptists, Adventists, Bread-breakers (Brotbrecher)
etc. The founders of the colonies Wohldemfurst and Alexanderfeld would
never have immigrated to the Caucasus if, in 1860 they had not separated
from the Old Mennonites (Altmennoniten) in their home in the Molotschna
district and established a new Mennonite Brethren Congregation. After
the separation they sought refuge in the North Caucasus where the Czarist
regime provided (subsidized) them with 6500 desjatines of land. In their
written petition to the Czar, they clearly explained that religious separation
was the impetus that led them to take the steps that brought them to the
North Caucasus. The petition ended with these words: All merciful Kaiser.
Present a favorable ear to a plea from your humble, loyal children that, after
God, seek your help. Their plea is that they be given refuge to practice their
evangelical church services (religion) and be protected from further persecu-
tion by local administrations (note by the author: what is meant here is the
self-government of the colonists), that their rights to practice their church
(religious) convictions and their civil rights be guaranteed by law.
By and large however, the most important reason for immigration of
German colonists to the North Caucasus was material (economic) rather
than religious.
Finally, after a series of bad harvests as well as extreme land shortages,
a large number of people left their native Volga Colonies, especially the
villages Norka, Huck and vicinity with the hope of finding greater
opportunities in the Kuban River areas.
John Eckerdt, the father of Lydia, Linda, Pauline, Amelia, and Albert,
was certain to have been born in Huck. He probably didnt talk much about
his past in Russia until later years. But his brother Jacob died in 1927 and
was ten years older than John, had recorded on his death certicate that he
was born in Huck on the Volga River Likewise was Johns younger brother
and his younger brothers wife. Evidence is that at least two other family
members were born in this area, further establishing a good hunch that their
immigration to the Kuban River area didnt take place until at least 1884 or
later. The reason for this type of immigration was to be able to give land to
children. When it would come time to divide land among many children,
Volga land was running out.
Therefore, families immigrated to afford better opportunities for their
children.
Most of the colonists looking for land in the 1890s went further east-
ward and into Siberia.
Settlement
In response to the question: How (when) did the German farmers
come to the north Caucasus? the answer can be said: After the conquest
of the North Caucasus and incorporation into its body-politic, the Czarist
regime undertook (encouraged) immigration by Volga German farmers. The
regimes invitation wasnt without having a purpose that would provide
benets to the country. The regime desired to populate a wild district and
at the same time establish an agricultural economy, and provide a buffer
(defense) against the invasion (intrusion) of the Caucasus inhabitants
(Tatars, Tschetsch, Tscherkesse, Ingusche, Nogaier, Kumeks, Tauline,
etc.). They were promised the same guarantees provided by Katharina
IIs manifesto, for all time (eternity) granted land without compensation,
self management with German as the language of administration, free of
military conscription, religious freedom etc. The Russian government paid
the travel costs, provided each family with a loan to become established,
and granted them free land in the North Causasus. The rst Volga Germans
settlements were established in the North Caucasus between the late 1830s
and early 1840s.
It was a long time before any settlements were established by Rus-
sian farmers.
The founders of Kana were emigrants from Kana in the Volga region.
Later there were many more individual families of Volga Germans who
settled in the North Caucasus and established homes in already existing Ger-
man villages. There were only a few cases in which these later immigrants
established their own village. The number of Volga German immigrants
cannot be precisely determined from the information available.
A much larger number of German farmers immigrated to the North
Caucasus from the Black Sea region. In 1860 Bessarabien Germans from
the parishes of Alt-Elft and Klostitz settled in the vicinity of Jekaterinodar
(Krasnodar) and Noworossijsk. Thus, there exists hope that there were or
will be records from Alt-Elft and/or Klostitz prior to 1880 showing our
Schutz family. It seems (from vague recall) that someone, such as Fred
Heldt, used to kid Amelia Fleming by calling her Polish. It is very reason-
able to deduct that they did indeed live in Poland for years or generations,
just as many Germans did.
1863/1864 Germans from the Molotschna district (Taurien Gouvern-
32
ment) settled along the Kuban River between Armawir and Batalpatschinsk
(Welikoknjashek (this includes our Neuheim)) - named in honor of the
ruling governor, the grand-duke Michael Nikolajewitsch -and Alexan-
derfeld (Alexandrodar) -named in honor of Czar Alexander II. There the
government granted them about 6500 desjatines land (about 2.7 acres per
desjatine), and about 100 families settled there. This is the only case, to the
knowledge of the writer (author) of this article, that Black Sea settlers in
the North Caucasus received assistance from the government to establish
themselves. All others coming to the North Caucasus from all three sides
were responsible for their own destiny and established a network of German
farm settlements throughout the region.
To establish (document) the immigration of individuals (or individual
families) of Black Sea Germans from South Russia to the North Caucasus
cannot be done with accuracy because the necessary documents are not
available. It is without doubt, however, that 90 to 95% of the German settle-
ments in the North Caucasus were established by Black Sea Germans.
Germans came directly out of Germany to some of the mother colonies
in existence. For example, some from Mittelfranken - Bayern - went to
Gnadenberg, southwest of Mosdok, and to Gnadenberg and Lindau near
Suchum-Kale. In Gnadenburg these Germans from Bayern placed their own
stamp upon the village, for here they built a factory that greatly resembled
the one in their old home (in Germany).
A large number of daughter colonies were established by residents of
the established colonies. From Kana arose Neu-Kana, from Wohldemirst
arose Rownoje, from Michaelstal on the Sea of Azov originally established
from Riebensdorf arose Alexandrowsk, Olgenfeld and Ruhenstal etc. The
number of primary (mother) settlements and their daughter colonies cannot
be rmly established.
The years of settlement of German villages in the North Caucasus were
from 1840 to 1914. One exception was the colony Karras near Pjatigorsk,
which was established by the Moravian Brethren in 1804, and whose resi-
dents, in part, came from Scotland.
There was also a large emigration from the North Caucasus to other
areas of Russia and overseas, such as to Dagestan in the middle Caucasus,
to Turkestan in central Asia, to Siberia, and to both
North and South America. Some Germans from
the Kuban district together with a larger number
of farmers from the colony Arkadak, a daughter
colony of the Chortitza colony of the Black Sea
region, purchased 3000 desjatine land in Persia in
the vicinity of the Caspian Sea from a Turkoman
(Turkmenischen) Chan (Chancellor) for 120,000
gold rubles (about 245,000 gold marks). They
had intended to establish a village with 30 farm
units, but these plans were hindered by the Rus-
sian revolution.
The author (of this article) seizes the opportu-
nity and considers it his duty to strongly emphasize
that the German farmers did not solicit the Russian farmers and other ethnics
(people) of the Czarist regime for new lands, but exclusively from the Rus-
sian nobility (grand dukes, counts, and owners of large land tracts), who
had been granted huge tracts of land as a gift from the ruling Czar.
Much of the following was from an article in the AGRS:
The German Colonies In The North Caucasus
By A. M.r
Trans. Armand and Elaine Bauer
Geographical Position
The rst German colonies founded {established) in the North Caucasus
were on the Sea of Azov and Black Sea,and from there they spread in a
broad band in a southeasterly direction to the Caspian Sea. The majority
of these colonies were in the Kuban and Terek Districts and the Gouvern-
ment Stawropol {today named Woroschilowsk). Within these districts and
gouvernment the colonies were located as follows:
a) Kuban District
1. Near Jeisk in the vicinity of the Sea of Azov:
Michaelstal {Woronzowka), Alexandrowsk, and the estates
Scharf, Walter, Deutsch, Schmidt; also the estates southeast
of
these which were Dyck, Schelist, and Zeprink.
2. Tamanschen Isthmus {between the Sea of Azov and the
Black
Sea): Michaelsfeld, {Dshiginskoje, Pilenkofeld, Jarewka.
3. In the north of Jekaterinodar {today called Krasnodar): Gna-
dau,
Deinig, and in the south part: Olgenfeld, Marienfeld.
4. Northwesterly and northerly of Armawir:
Eigenfeld {Wannowskoje), Rosenfeld {Scheremtjewskoje),
Alexanderfeld (Leonowkoje), Neuheim, Sonnental, Sokolo-
wo.
Natalienfeld (Natalino), Lilienfeld. Marienfeld, Markosow-
ka,
and the estate Nowo-Iwanowskoje.
5. To the north and northwest of Batalpatschinsk:
Wohldenfurst (Welikoknjashesk), Alexanderfeld
(Alexandrodar), Roshdestwenka, Hoehnfeld, Eigenheim,
Rownoje, Karlowka, Hochfeld, and Neuhoffnung.
Our Neuheim in the Ust-Labinskaja district was evangelical (not
Catholic or Menonite) established in 1888, 450 population in 1918 &
600 in 1926.
Six colonies established in the North Caucasus by settlers from Bessara-
bia are listed here as bearing special importance. They were Eigenfeld
(Wannowskoje), established 1868 on 1,500 dessiatines (4,050 acres),
population 777 in 1894 and 1,142 in 1926; Alexanderfeld (Leonowskoje),
established 1870 on 1,000 dessiatines, population 276 in 1894 and 653 in
1926; Rosenfeld (Scheremetzewskoje), established 1872 on 1,000 dessiat-
ines, population 331 in 1894, 740 in 1926; Gros-Markosowka. (Markosow),
established 1874 on 1,600 dessiatines leased land, population 600 in 1906;
Lienfeld, established 1874, acreage unknown, population 309 in 1926;
Kronental (Deutsch Chaginsk) (Nemetzi Chaginsk), established 1878, 4,288
dessiatines, population 1,872 in 1905, 2,280 in 1918.
German villages with which the inhabitants of Markosowka maintained
contact were Lilienfeld and Rosenfeld about 18 and 22 versts respectively
33
34
35
36
Southern Russia now contains a variety of races such as is to be found,
perhaps, nowhere else in Europe. An 1878 World Encyclopedia records
that in this area around Neuheim and Eketrinaddar is a conglomera-
tion of races and languages such as not to be found anywhere else on the
earths surface, not even in the U.S. The ofcial statistics of New Russia
alone-that is to say. the provinces of Ekaterinoslaf, Tauride, Kherson, and
Bessarabia-enumerate the following nationalities:
Great Russians. Little Russians, Poles, Servians, Montenegrins, Bul-
garians, Moldavians, Germans, English, Swedes, Swiss, French, Italians,
Greeks, Armenians, Tartars, Mordwa, Jews and Gypsies. The religions are
almost equally numerous. The statistics speak of Greek Orthodox. Roman
Catholics, Gregorians, Lutherans, Calvinists, Anglicans, Menonites, Sepa-
ratists, Pietists, Karaim Jews, Talmudists, Mahometans, and numerous Rus-
sian sects, such as the Molokani and the Skoptsi or Eunuchs. America herself
could scarcely show a more motley list in her statistics of population.
It is but fair to state that the above list, though literally correct, does
not give a true idea of the actual population. The great body of the inhabit-
ants are Russian and Orthodox, whilst several of the nationalities named
are represented by a small number of souls - some of them, such as the
French, being found exclusively in the towns. Still, the variety even in the
rural population is very great. Once, in the space of three days and using
only the most primitive means of conveyance, I visited colonies of Greeks,
Germans, Servians, Bulgarians, Montenegrins, and Jews.
Of all the foreign colonists the Germans are by far the most numerous.
The object of the Government in inviting them to the in the country was
that they should till the unoccupied land and thereby increase the national
wealth, and that they should at the same time exercise a civilizing inuence
on the Russian peasantry in their vicinity. In this latter respect they have
totally failed to fulll their mission. A Russian village, situated in the midst
of German colonies, shows generally, so far as I could observe, no signs of
German inuence. Each nationality lives more majorum, and holds as little
communication as possible with the other. The muzhik observes carefully-
for he is very curious-the mode of life of his more advanced neighbors, but
he never thinks of adopting it. He looks upon Germans almost as beings
of a different world-as a wonderfully cunninig and ingenious people, who
have been endowed by Providence with peculiar qualities not possessed
by ordinary Orthodox humanity. To him it seems in the nature of things
that Germans should live in large, clean, well built houses, in the same
way as it is in the nature of things that birds should build nests; and as it
has probably never occurred to a human being to build a nest for himself
and his family, so it never occurs to a Russian peasant to build a house on
the German model. Germans are Germans, and Russians are Russians-and
there is nothing more to be said on the subject.
This stubbornly conservative spirit of the peasantry who live in the
neighborhood of Germans seems to give the lie direct to the oft-repeated
and universally-believed assertion that Russians are an imitative people
strongly disposed to adopt the manners and customs of any foreigners with
whom they may come in contact.
The Russian, it is said, changes his nationality as easily as he changes
his coat, and derives great satisfaction from wearing some nationality that
does not belong to him; but here we have an important fact which appears
to prove the contrary.
The marked contrast presented by a German colony and a Russian
village in close proximity with each other is often used to illustrate the
superiority of the Teutonic over the Slavonic race, and in order to make
the contrast more striking, the Menonite colonies are gencrally taken as
the representatives of thc Germans.
Without entering here on the general question, I must say that this
method of argumentation is scarcely fair. The Menonites, who formerly
lived in the neighborhood of Danzig and emigrated from Prussia in order
to escape the military conscription, brought with them to their new home
a large store of useful technical knowledge and a considerable amount of
capital, and they received a quantity of land very much greater the Russian
peasants possess. Besides this, they enjoyed until very recently several
valuable privileges. They were entirely exempted from military service
and almost entirely exempted from taxation. Altogether their lines have
fallen in very pleasant places. In material and moral well-being they stand
as far above the majority of the ordinary German colonists as these latter
do above their Russian neighbors. Even in the richest districts of Germany
their prosperity would attract attention. To compare these rich, privileged,
well-educated farmers with the poor, heavily-taxed, uneducated peasantry,
and to draw from the comparison conclusions concerning the capabilities
of the two races, is a proceeding so palpably absurd that it requires no
further comment.
To the wearied traveler who has been living for some time in Russian
villages one of these Menonite colonies seems an earthly paradise.
If you arrive amongst them as a stranger you may be a little chilled by
the welcome you receive, for they are exclusively reserved, and distrustful,
and do not much like to associate with those who do not belong to their
own sect; but if you can converse with them in their mother tongue and
talk about religious matters in an evangelical tone, you may easily over-
come their stiffness and exclusiveness. Altogether such a village cannot be
recommended for a lengthened sojourn, for the severe order and symmetry
which everywhere prevail would soon prove intolerable to anyone having
no Dutch blood in his veins.
But of all the colonists of this region the least prosperous are the Jews.
The Chosen People are certainly a most intelligent, industrious, frugal
race, and in all matters of buying, selling, and bartering they are unrivaled
among the nations of the earth, but they have been too long accustomed to
town life to be good tillers of the soil. These Jewish colonies were founded
as an experiment to see whether the Israelite could be weaned from his
traditionary pursuits and transferred to what some economists call the
productive section of society. The experiment has failed, and the cause of
the failure is not difcult to nd. One has merely to look at these men of
gaunt visage and shambling gait, with their loop holed slippers, and black,
threadbare coats reaching down to their ankles, to understand that they are
not in their proper sphere.
Their houses are in a most dilapidated condition, and their villages
remind one of the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the
Prophet. A great part of their land is left uncultivated or let to colonists of
a different race. What little revenue they have is derived chiey from trade
of a more or less clandestine nature.
As Scandinavia was formerly called ofcina gentium - a workshop
in which new nations were made - so we may regard Southern Russia as a
workshop in which fragments of old nations are being melted down to form
a new, composite whole. It must be confessed, however, that the melting
process has as yet scarcely begun.
National peculiarities are not obliterated so rapidly in Russia as in
America or in British colonies. In the United States I have often seen Ger-
mans who had been but a few years in the country trying hard to be more
American than the natives, ludicrously exaggerating American peculiarities
of manner, speaking a barbarous jargon which they supposed to English in
preference to their mother tongue, boisterously expressing their admiration
of American institutions, and ready to resent as an insult any doubt as to their
being genuine citizens of the Great Republic. Among the German colonists
in Russia I have never seen anything of this kind. Though their fathers and
grandfathers may have been born in the new country they would consider it
an insult to be called Russians. They look down upon the Russian peasantry
as poor, ignorant, lazy, and dishonest, fear the ofcial on account of their
tyranny and extortion, preserve jealously their own language and customs,
rarely speak Russian well-sometimes not at all-and never intermarry with
those from whom they are separated by nationality and religion. The Russian
inuence acts, however, more rapidly on the Slavonic colonists-Servians,
Bulgarians, Montenegrins-who profess the Greek Orthodox faith, learn more
easily the Russian language which is closely allied to their own, have no
consciousness of belonging to a Culturvolk, and in general possess a nature
37
much more pliable than the Teutonic.
The Government is at present attempting to accelerate the fusion process
by retracting the privileges granted to the colonists and abolishing the peculiar
-administration under which they were placed. These measures-especially the
conscription-may, perhaps, eventually diminish the extreme exclusiveness of
the Germans; the youths, whilst serving in the army, will at least learn the
Russian language, and may possibly imbibe something of the Russian spirit.
But for the present this new policy has aroused strong feeling of hostility and
greatly intensied the spirit of exclusiveness. In every German colony one may
overhear complaints about Russian tyranny and uncomplimentary remarks
about the Russian national character.
THE COSSACKS.
The following four paragraphs are from other sources:
Kuban Territory is called Cossack land. It is also called Cossacks of
the Black Sea. Those of you who know Russian geography and literature are
raising your eyebrows. The Don Cossack is the stereotype we all know from
Mikhail Sholokhobs novels And Quiet Flows the Don and Seeds of Tomor-
row.-the epic of the Cossacks dramatic and turbulent history.
Centuries ago, in the time of serfdom, the Cossacks ed from oppression
and settled all over Russia. The Cossack knew only one duty, to the Motherland.
At a time of trial he would mount his horse, take his ammunition and put his
valor, his skills and even his hot temper at the service of the country.
Stereotypes persist, even though times and realities have changed. Some
feelings are as old as the world, and competitiveness is one of them. The two
competing collective farms, Kalinin and Pobeda, carefully watch each others
achievements.
In the 1950s the movie The Kuban Cossacks was playing in movie theaters
all over the country.
The following is a continuation from the 1881 book.
Tartar RaidsSlave-markets of the Crimea-The Military Cordon and
the Free Cossacks-Beyond the Rapids-The Zaporovian Commonwealth
compared with Sparta and with the Medieval Military Orders-The Cossacks of
the Don, of the Volga, and of the Ural-Border Warfare-The Modern Cossacks-
Land Tenure among the Cossacks of the Don-The Transition from Pastoral to
Agricultural Life- Universal Law of Social Development-Communal versus
Private Property-Flogging as a means of Land registration.
To conquer the Tartars was no easy task, but to pacify them and introduce
law and order amongst them was a work of much greater difculty. Long after
they had lost their political independence they retained their old pastoral mode
of life, and harassed the agricultural population of the outlying provinces in
the same way as the Red Indians harass the white colonists in the western ter-
ritories of America at the present day. What considerably added to the difculty
was that a large section of the Horde, inhabiting the Crimea and the steppe to
the north of the Black Sea, escaped conquest by submitting to the Ottoman
Turks and becoming tributaries of the Sultan. The Turks were at that time a
formidable aggressive power, with which the Tsars of Muscovy were too weak
to cope successfully, and the Khan of the Crimea could always, when hard
pressed by his northern neighbors, obtain assistance from Constantinople. This
potentate exercised a nominal authority over the pastoral tribes which roamed
on the steppe between the Crimea and the Russian frontier, but he had neither
the power nor the desire to control their aggressive tendencies. Their raids in
Russian and Polish territory insured, among other advantages, a regular and
plentiful supply of slaves, which formed the chief article of export from Kaffa-
the modern Theodosia - and from the other seaports of the coast.
Of this slave trade, which ourished down to 1783, when the Cimea was
nally conquered and annexed to Russia, we have a graphic account by an eye-
witness, a Lithuanian traveler of the sixteenth century. Ships from Asia, he
says, bring arms, clothes, and horses to the Crimean Tartars, and start on the
homeward voyage laden with slaves. It is for this kind of merchandise alone
that the Crimean markets are remarkable. Slaves may be always had for sale
as a pledge or as a present, and everyone rich enough to have a horse deals in
them. If a man wishes to buy clothes, arms, or horses, and does not happen
to have at the moment any slaves, he takes on credit the articles required, and
makes a formal promise to deliver at a given term a certain number of people
of our blood-being convinced that he can get by that time the requisite number.
And these promises are always accurately fullled, as if those who made them
had always a supply of our people in their courtyards. A Jewish money-changer,
sitting at the gate of Tauris and seeing constantly the countless multitude of our
countrymen led in as captives, asked us whether there still remained any people
in our land, and whence came such a multitude of them. The stronger of these
captives, branded on the forehead and the cheeks and manacled or fettered, are
tortured by severe labor all day, and are shut up in dark cells at night. They are
kept alive by small quantities of food, composed chiey of the esh of animals
that have died-putrid, covered with maggots, disgusting even to dogs. Women,
who are more tender, are treated in a different fashion; some of them who can
sing and play are employed to amuse the guests at festivals. When the slaves
are led out for sale they walk to the market-place in single le, like storks on
the wing, in whole dozens, chained together by the neck, and are there sold by
auction. The auctioneer shouts loudly that they are the newest arrivals, simple,
and not cunning, lately captured, from the people of the kingdom (Poland),
and not from Muscovy; for the Muscovite race, being crafty and deceitful,
does not bring a good price. This kind of merchandise is appraised with great
accuracy in the Crimea, and is bought by foreign merchants at a high price,
in order to be sold at a still higher rate to blacker nations, such as Saracens,
Persians, Indians, Arabs, Syrians, and Assyrians. When a purchase is made the
teeth are examined, to see that they are neither few nor discolored.
At the same time the more hidden parts of the body are carefully inspected,
and if a mole, excrescence, wound, or other latent defect is discovered, the
bargain is rescinded.
The Cossacks of the Don, of the Volga, and of the Yaik had a somewhat
different organization. The had no fortied camp like the Setch, but lived
in villages, and assembled as necessity demanded. As they were completely
beyond the sphere of Polish inuence, they knew nothing about knightly
honor and similar conceptions of Western chivalry; they even adopted many
Tartar customs, and loved in time of peace to strut about in gorgeous Tartar
costumes. Besides this, they were nearly all emigrants from Great Russia,
and mostly Old Ritualists or Sectarians, whilst the Zaporovians were Little
Russians and Orthodox.
These military communities rendered valuable service to Russia. The
best means of protecting the southern frontier was to have as allies a large
body of men leading the same kind of life and capable of carrying on the same
kind of warfare as the nomadic murauders; and such a body of men were the
Free Cossacks.
The sentiment of self-preservation and the desire of the booty kept them
constantly on the alert. By sending out small parties in all directions, by
procuring tongues - that is to say, by kidnapping and torturing straggling
Tartars with a view to extracting information from them-by keeping spies in
the enemys territory, and by similar devices, they were generally apprised
beforehand of any intended incursion. When danger threatened, the ordinary
precautions were redoubled. Day and night patrols kept watch at the points
where the enemy was expected, and as soon as sure signs of his approach
were discovered, a pile of tarred barrels prepared for the purpose was red to
give the alarm. Rapidly the signal was repeated at one point of observation
after another, and by this primitive system of telegraphy in the course of a few
hours the whole district was up in arms. If the invaders were not too numerous,
they were at once attacked and driven back. If they were too numerous to be
successfully resisted, they were allowed to pass, but a troop of Cossacks was
sent to pillage their aouls in their absence, whilst another and larger force was
collected, in order to intercept them when they were returning home laden with
booty. Thus many a nameless battle was fought on the trackless steppe, and
many brave men fell unhonored and unsung -
Illacrymables Urgentur ignotique longa
Noct, carent quia vate sacro.
Notwithstanding these valuable services, the Cossack communities were
a constant source of diplomatic and political dangers. As they paid very little
attention to the orders of the Government, they supplied the Sultan with any
number of casus belli, and were often ready to turn their arms against the power
to which they professed allegiance. During the troublous times, for example,
when the national existence was endangered by civil strife and foreign inva-
sion, they over-ran the country, robbing, pillaging, and burning as they were
wont to do in the Tartar auls. At a later period the Don Cossacks twice raised
formidable insurrections - rst under Stenka Razin (1670), and secondly under
Pugatchef (1773) - and during the war between Peter the Great and Charles
XII. Of Sweden, the Zaporovians took the side of the Swedish king.
The Government naturally strove to put an end to this danger, and ulti-
mately succeeded. All the Cossacks were deprived of their independence, but
the fate of the various communities was different. Those of the Volga were
transferred to the Terek, where they had abundant occupation in guarding the
frontier against the incursions of the Eastern Caucasian tribes. The Zaporovians
held tenaciously to their Dnieper liberties, and resisted all interference, till
they were forcibly disbanded in the time of Catherine II. The majority of them
ed to Turkey, where some of their descendants are still to be found, and the
remainder were settled on the Kuban, where they could lead their old life by car-
rying on an irregular warfare with the tribes of the Western Caucasus. Since the
capture of Shamyl and the pacication of Caucasus, this Cossack population,
extending in an unbroken line from the Son of Azof to the Caspian, have been
able to turn their attention to peaceful pursuits, and now raise large quantities
of wheat for exportation; but-they still retain their martial bearing, and some
of them regret the good old times when a brush with the Caucassians was an
ordinary occurrence and the work of tilling the soil was often diversied with
38
a more exciting kind of occupation. The romance of their life is gone, and the
most formidable enemy with which they have now to contend is the wild boar
living in the forests of reeds which cover the low, marshy banks of the water-
courses; but a thousand thrilling incidents of border warfare are still fresh in
their memory. More than once during my travels in this region the tedium of
long journeys was enlivened by my Yemstchik relating to me stirring incidents
from his personnel experience. The Circassians, it seems, rarely attacked their
opponents openly, but sought to pass through the line unperceived in order to
plunder the agricultural population in thc rear; and the rapidity of their move-
ments, together with their intimate knowledge of the country, often enabled
them to do this successfully. After seeing many specimens of both races, I could
appreciate the wisdom of these tactics, and had no difculty in believing that
the light, agile Circassians, however brave they may have been, were no match
for the big, stalwart Cossacks in a fair, hand-to-hand ght, in which weight
could be brought into play. Nowhere, indeed, have I met-except perhaps in
Montenegro-with such magnicent specimens of the genus homo as among
these gigantic, monstachioed descendants of the Zaporovians. If there arc still
any authors of the Fenimore school who wish to collect materials for exciting
tales of adventure, I would recommend them to learn Russian and spend a few
months in the Cossack stanitsas of the Terek and the Kuban.
The Cossacks of the Yaik and the Don have been allowed to remain in
their old homes, but they have been deprived of their independence and self-
government, and their social organization has been completely changed. The
boisterous popular assemblies which formerly decided all public affairs have
been abolished, and thc custom of choosing the Ataman and other ofce-bear-
ers by popular election has been replaced by a system of regular promotion,
according to rules elaborated in St. Petersburg.
This change has destroyed the social equality which was in old times a
distinctive feature of these communities. The ofcers and their families now
compose a kind of hereditary aristocracy, which has succeeded in appropriating,
by means of Imperial grants, a large portion of the land which was formerly
common property. The common Cossacks are now simply a species of mounted
militia. They possess a large amount of fertile land, and are exempted from
all direct taxation; and in return for these privileges they are obliged to euip
themselves at their own expense, and to serve at home or elsewhere as the
military authorities think t to command. In time of peace the majority of them
are allowed to remain at home, and have to turn out merely for a short period
in summer; but a very large number of them are constantly required for active
service, and are to be met with in all parts of the Empire, from the Prussian to
the Chinese frontier. In the Asiatic Provinces their services are invaluable.
Capable of enduring an incredible amount of fatigue and all manner of
privations, they can live and thrive in conditions which would soon disable
regular troops. The capacity of self-adaptation, which is characteristic of the
Russian people generally, is possessed by them in the highest degree. When
placed on some distant Asiatic frontier they can at once transform themselves
into squatters-building their own house, raising crops of grain, and living as
colonists without neglecting their military duties.
If they require cattle they can lift them, either in the territory beyond
the frontier or in the region which they are supposed to protect-precisely as
their ancestors did centuries ago. Thus they do their work effectually at a very
small cost to the Imperial exchequer. How far the system is acceptable to the
local population is, of course, a different question. In outlying provinces I
have often heard people complain that Cossack protection was, on the whole,
rather expensive; but perhaps these complaints are unworthy of attention,
for people everywhere object to their own local rates, and wish to have them
defrayed by the national treasury.
I have sometimes heard it asserted by military men that the Cosssack
organization is an antiquated institution, and that the soldiers which it produces,
however useful they may be in Central Asia, would be of little service in regular
European warfare. How far this is true I cannot pretend to say, for it is a subject
on which a civilian has no right to speak, but I may remark that the Cossacks
themselves are not by any means of that opinion. They regard themselves as the
most valuable troops which the Tsar possesses, believing themselves capable
of performing anything within the bounds of human possibility, and a good
deal that lies beyond that limit. More than once Don Cossacks have assured
me that if the Tsar had allowed them to t out a otilla of small boats during
the Crimean War they would have captured the British eet, as their ancestors
used to capture Turkish galleys on the Black Sea! During my journeys in the
country of tl1e Don Cossacks I picked up some information concerning the
land tenure, and I mean to communicate it to the reader, because it is in itself
curious, and because it tends to throw light on some of the primitive stages of
social development-especially on that singular custom of periodically distribut-
ing the communal land, which I described in a former chapter.
In old times, throughout the whole territory of the Don Cossacks, agricul-
ture was prohibited on pain of death. It is generally supposed that this measure
was adopted with a view to preserve the martial spirit of the inhabitants, but this
hypothesis appears to me extremely far-fetched and very improbable. The great
majority of the Cossacks, averse to all regular, laborious occupations, wished to
live by shing, hunting, cattle-breeding, and marauding, but there was always
amongst them a considorable number of immigrants-runaway serfs from the
interior, who had been accustomed to live by agriculture. These latter wished
to raise crops on the fertile virgin soil, and if they had been allowed to do so
they would have to some extent spoiled the pastures. We have here, I believe,
the true reason for the above-mentioned prohibition, and this view is strongly
conrmed by analogous facts which I have observed in another locality. In the
Kirghis territory the poorer inhabitants of the aouls near the frontier, having few
or no cattle, wish to let part of the common land to the neighboring Russian
peasantry for agricultural purposes; but, the richer inhabitants, who possess
ocks and herds, strenuously oppose this movement, and would doubtless
prohibit it under pain of death if they had the power, because all agricultural
encroachments diminish the pasture-land.
Whatever was the real reason of the prohibition, practical necessity
proved in the long run too strong for the anti-agriculturists. As the population
augmented and the opportunities for marauding decreased, the majority had
to overcome their repugnance to husbandry; and soon large patches of plowed
land or waving grain were to be seen in the vicinity of the stanitsas, as the
Cossack villages are termed. At rst there was no attempt to regulate this new
use of the ager publicus. Each Cossack who wished to raise a crop plowed
and sowed wherever he thought t, and retained as long as he chose the land
thus appropriated; and when the soil began to show signs of exhaustion, he
abandoned his plot and plowed elsewhere. But this unregulated use of the
communal property could not long continue. As the number of agriculturists
increased, quarrels frequently arose and sometimes terminated in bloodshed.
KRASNODAR
(formerly Yekaterinodar)
Population-552,000 ( 1977)
The town stands on the high right bank of River Kuban which ows through
the black earth plain that is one of the Soviet Unions most important areas for
growing wheat, sugar beet and sunowers and which is often known as the
pearl of Russia.
It was founded in 1793 during the reign of Catherine II as a Cossack
settlement and fortress protecting the Russian frontier. It was called Yekateri-
nodar and became the Cossack armys headquarters. The buildings at that time
consisted largely of mud huts roofed with reeds and straw. A traveler at the
beginning of the 19th century wrote that the huts reminded him of the military
command at ease, because they all faced different ways, some even having
their backs to the streets. In 1860 it was made the capital of the Kuban Cos-
sacks but seven years later it was reorganized as a civilian town. At the end of
the nineteenth century it began to develop rapidly, as did so many other towns,
following the opening of the railway connections; in the 1890s it was already
a large transport and trade junction. There are still remains of the earth wall of
the fortress to be seen.
Yekaterinodar was the center of the areas revolutionary activities in 1905
and during the Civil War and there is a monument to the memory of those who
lost their lives. The town was renamed Krasnodar in 1920.
During the Second World War it was occupied by the Germans from
August, 1942 till February, 1943 and an obelisk commemorates the libera-
tion date. When the Germans retreated, they blew up or burned most of the
principal buildings.
Local Museum, Kommunisticheskay~ St. 53. Founded in 1879.
Krasnodar Hotel and Restaurant, Gogol St. 52; TEL. 49-01. The local
Intourist ofce is here.
Kuban Hotel and Restaurant, Kommunisticheskaya St. 5
Sport Hotel, Zheleznodorozhnaya St. 35
Tsentralny Hotel and Restaurant, Krasnaya St. 25. A new hotel is under
construction at Krasnaya St.170. (1980)
Youzhny Motel,Severnaya St.31
39
to the north and situated inside the curve where the Kuban River makes its
westward bend to ow into the Black Sea. Sonnental lay across the railway
line, very near the Kuban and across the river from the city Krapotkin.
Eigenfeld, Rosenfeld and Alexanderfeld, in that order from east to
west, were located on the southern bank of the Kuban some 20, 40 and 60
versts distant. The initial settlers were almost exclusively Bessarabian, but
over a period of time only the above three continued to maintain that status.
Gros Markosowka, Klein Markosowka, Lilienfeld and Rosenfeld were
mixed Bessarabian and Volga Germans, while Sonnental became exclu-
sively Volga German, with settlers principally from Huck and Norka.
SONNENTAL: established about 1900 with a population of about
200, almost exclusively from the village of Huck on the Volga. It lay
across the Kuban from the town Kazkazkaja - also called Kapkaski
by the Germans - to the east of the main road and west of Lilienfeld.
ROSENFELD (Scheremetjewskoje): established 1872 on 1000 des-
siatines; population: (1894) 331; (1906) 510; (1919) (1926) 740; average
classroom size, 60 pupils.
A Difcult Beginning
The immigration to the North Caucasus, of itself, caused those
who were willing great hardships and trouble. The scouts or land-
seekers (those who located the land for the immigrants), who for the
most part were farmers, organized treks (wagon trains) which were
loaded down with provisions (food), household goods, and farm equip-
ment. The wagons were drawn by horses. On these covered wagons
sat men, women, and children. Horses, cows, and the young animals
were driven at the rear of the trek by the young people. The wagon
trains resembled a wretched worm, that during the day, on virtually
impassable routes, creaked slowly and tiresomely along, and in the
night camped (rested) on the open steppe (prairie).
Caravans of people wound their way across the Russian steppes,
where the roads were often mere trails, in unending wormlike proces-
sions. The wagons were piled high with earthly possessions, on top of
which sat the women and children, while the young men and boys
drove the livestock on foot. After 1875-76, when the Trans-Siberian
railroad had been completed, the movement of goods and people was
made easier. How our Eckerdts made the trip will never be known and can
only be imagined.
Often the trip took weeks before the destination was reached. Some
of the wagon trains were surprised by the onset of winter. The immigrants
experienced cold weather and illness; and without the presence of members
of the medical profession, they treated the illness as best as they knew.
Those who died during the trek were buried in alien cemeteries. In this
manner, until 1875, Volga Germans from the middle Volga region and
Black Sea Germans from the vast realm of South) Russia traveled to the
North Caucasus.
Not until 1875/1876 could the newly-constructed trans-Causasus
railroad provide transportation for immigrants. The settlers then ordered
railroad cars which they loaded with provisions, household goods, farm
equipment, and livestock - all of their possessions - and traveled in this
manner to the North Caucasus. Although the trip with a train was faster
40
(than a horse-drawn wagon) and more pleasant, the settlers never-the-less
had to endure many inconveniences such as waiting long hours in the train
yards, cold nights which they had to spend in the unheated train cars, water
shortages etc. Since the Russian government placed a large worth on settling
the North Caucasus with farmers, the government guaranteed the settlers
moderate costs for their transportation and freight.
Once at their destination the settlers found no lodging on their newly
acquired land. They were forced to erect temporary earth huts (semljanki)
out of clay and earth in which they lived for a period of up to two years
because of the lack (dearth) of building materials.
Because of the dampness and unfamiliar climate (living conditions
they were not acclimated to) the majority became ill with the so-called
Klimaeber (malaria) and many died. In order to guard (defend) against
the illness, the settlers had to alter their living quarters between the lowlands
and the healthier uplands. Flies and other pests tormented man and ani-
mals. Mice caused considerable damage to crops in the eld. Grasshoppers
destroyed newly-established orchards and vegetable gardens, and recently
emerged seedlings of grain crops. Numerous surprises on behalf of (or came
from) the native people living in the Caucasus caused fear and terror to
develop among the settlers. The settlers lost a large number of their cattle
(livestock), which they so badly needed for their agricultural enterprises. The
thievery, which was a daily occurrence in some settlements, was gradually
stopped by establishing self-defense procedures. Additionally there were
crop failures in the early years, which increased the distress and poverty
among the settlers.
Under these circumstances, some of the new settlers lost their zeal
for settlement and returned to their old homeland. By and large however,
the majority stayed in the area and on their place of settlement. They
overcame all difculties and, with time, through industriousness and with
great perseverance, the newly-established villages blossomed into beauti-
ful, wealthy settlements.
Few among the German-Russian immigrants to the United States other
than clergy and teachers wrote about experiences of living in a German
colony in Russia. One of these few was a man by the name of Gottlieb
Harr, whose memoirs were published in a German newspaper distributed
mostly in the Dakotas around 1935.
According to the memoirs, Gottliebs parents went by horse and
wagon along with many others to the Caucasus (which is where the Kuban
River is).
When they arrived they discovered it was uncivilized, and the inhabit-
ants were a wild bunch. Bashkirs Kalmucks, and Kirghiz and many other
tribes lived there. Often his parents told of a friends horse that died on
the road and several Kalmucks came along and asked if they could have
the dead horse. They set to work cutting raw pieces from the animals and
ate it like dogs.
Harpers says: The Kirghizs bear a reputation worse than indiffer-
ent, and many were the tales of their robberies and murders told by the
Russians. The different hordes are likewise always on the wait to kill and
plunder each other.
Gottlieb also tells that the Caucasus wasa land of many snakes.
Because of this, many people were soon fed up with it and returned to
their homes. Five times the Kalmucks stole horses from Gottliebs father.
Within a year, he too left with his family back to where hed come from,
starting anew again.
Others reported favorable conditions. One Mennonite lady who lived
in Canada, told that it was a very beautiful area, with vast elds of poppies.
There were all sorts of animals, like the ostrich. The weather was very
much like California. It didnt snow much and didnt get very cold in the
winter. You could see the snow-capped Caucasus mountains. On the other
side of the mountains were very adventurous treks. It was rugged with deep
gorges, and was densely wooded. Pete Geyers daughter told of how they
had to take their grain to town or to another village where they sold their
grain in caravans for protection. She told of how the Cosacks would ride
through town on their horses shooting wildly, aimlessly, and how the lack
of law and order was similar to the old West. There was not necessarily
punishment because someone shot another.
Youll nd recorded in the 1878 world atlas that this area near Eketeri-
nodar is a conglommeration of races and languages such as to be found
on the earths surface not even in the United States.
The Volga Germans started to move into this north Caucasus region
around 1840. After that, the Black Sea Germans, those who settled just to
the north of the Black Sea (an area they called Besarabia.) came before
1850, and more around the 1860s. Numerous German settlements sprouted
up at this time in the area.
The village that our Eckerdts and Geyers lived in was called Neuheim.
It was rst known as a settlement in 1888.
Thirty small German colonies along the Kuban River formed between
1864 and 1888. Neuheim was one of the last that was formed.
Evidence that Eckerdts went to the Kuban & Notes which help
identify our Eckerdts in the Kuban:
Phillip Heldt wrote in his old Bible:
married Katharina Eckerdt 1893 at Kuban, Kakasia (probably meant
Caucasia) by Pastor Schultz in Kuder Boharsukwa Bella Bella and
also in papers or Bible: Katarina Ekkardt born 1873 in Kamferland
+ baptised there.
He was interviewed at 92 in 1961 by Langdon ND Pioneer Days
& said: married Katherine Eckerdt at Libia in 1893.
In July 11 of about 1991, Ron copied the following at Esther
Wirths apartment Devils lake: on the steamship receipt: (to your
cousin Johann John meaning John Heldt)
City: Stanzia Ladoschskaja P.O. Ladoschskaja Kub (or Koel
or Koeb? or Koef or Kub)
Province: Kuban Oblast Kolomia (Colony?) N
euheimm
Country: Karokas (Caucasia?)
From Chutor (Khutor) Nowoselowka from a publication
listing German Settlements are these names following the listing
of Neuheim: (Nowoselka; Nowosalkowka), Krasnodarsky Kraj.
39/45 and Neuheim as being in the Distric of Ust-Labinskaja. Pop.
1918=450, 1926: 60
Jo Ann Kuhr in Jan 20, 1987 told Ron The most important
bit of information he gave you was the name of Pastor Schultz.
Adrian Schultz was in the area of Ekaterinodar-Novorossisk from
1891-1908. He was sent to the area as the numbers of Evangelical
Lutherans (mainly Germans) moving into the area necessitated
the establishment of additional centers of church activity. The
parish Ekaterinodar-Novorossisk was established in 1895 and the
permanent annex of Ekaterinodar in 1897. A complete history of
this parish is available in German from the AGHRS. Translation
is $7.50pr-hr and it will take several hours. (authors note: I doubt
that this would include our Schutz-Eckerdt names but there is a
slight possibility).
In 1905, the parish annex of Ekaterinodar included the city of
Eketerinodar, the German villages of Michaelsfeld, Pilenkofeld,
Vannoviskye, Shermetyevskoye, Leonovsklye and Gandau, and
numerous Khutors and individual settlements. The Kuter in the
Bible record was likely a Khutor. In the gazetteer of Russian towns,
the closest I can nd to your Boharsukwa is Bogarsukov, now
known as Boguzukovo. It is located at 44 degrees 49 North and 39
degrees 05 East. This puts it just south of Krasnodar. A Khutor was
originally a small group of buildings on land belonging to a village
some distance away. It was also the name given to individual farms.
Your Katherine Eckhard (Katarina Ekhardt) was probably married
at Khutor Bogarsukov. (Ron says this is like about 30-miles west
of Neuheim. I have heard that some of the farms were a long ways
out but this is a bit far)
41
In a letter from Edmund Heldt, he states that his Mother said
she was married in Barharsukwa often referred to as Neuheim.
The Map Division of the Library of Congress can send to (get their
address from your post ofce) copies of the maps (if available)
from those done by the Russian army corps of engineers roughly
1929-1940, the Generalny Shtab Krasnaya Armiya USSR maps,
AMS Library Call Number N3-30-57049-50 for the area around
the coordinates in subject or as given above. If this series of maps
dont include our area, see what they do have. These maps are in
Russian. Jo Ann offered, if we sent to her copies, she would translate
the names of the towns and khutors on them. Summarizing:
The Khutors named here are: Boharsukwa, Bogarsukov,
Barharsukwa (often referred to as Neuheim) and Boguzukovo and
Nowoselowka.
Ron suggests that the German accent here came out with a L
sound but in reality was N and that Boharsukwa and Barharsukwa
were spelling variations of Nowoselowka. Liebenan was another
settlement just 5 miles southwest along the Kuban. The region was
called Kropotkin which is where Phillip may have derived (or/and
others as well (in slang)) Kamferland. Katrina was probably mar-
ried in or very close to Neuheim (Nowoselowka) or a little known
Kutor called Boharsukwa owned by our Eckerdts and perhaps not
far from Liebenan (Libia).
The post ofce was as (as well as the city): Ladoschskaja.
(actually the District). The colony was our Neuheim. Married in
Libia
Johns nephew John (son of Jacob listed Leban as a port of
departure when he and his family of Heldts, Redigers and Eckerdts
moved to N.D. in 1900. JoAnn Kuhr believed that Leban was the
waterfront port of Lieban in Latvia. More on this later. There is a
slight possibility that John meant point of departure being Liebenan
(nearby where they had lived 15-30 years).
There are three linguistic & spelling challenges to geographical
clarication. One is how our people referred to their origin. If you
live in the Chicago Suburb of Downers Grove, you visited California
and a stranger asks you where you are from, you may say Chicago.
Likewise, our people may have replied South Russia, Kuban,
Kropotkin (or Kanfherland). Some of our Eckerdts said they were
from Odessa. A AGRHS geneologist told us everyones from
Odessa - (if they were native to South Russia). Odessa was a
name they used to identify an area. Actually, our people probably
(we know John did) got their passport in Odessa. Pete Geyer said
he was born in Saratov. More certainly born specically in Huck
(in the Saratov area, district or Province (whatever they called their
counties)). Obituary:
Rites held at Sarles for John Eckerdt. Native
of Rusia lived at Sarles 34 years: Passes away
Friday. Funeral services were held at the Sarles
Presbyterian church Tuesday for John Eckerdt,
resident of that community for 34 years. The
pioneer passed away early Friday, March 16,
1945, after an illness of a weeks duration.
John Eckerdt was born April 14, 1864, at Ekat-
erinodar, in Russia. He was reared in that coun-
try, served ve years in the army and learned
the gunsmiths trade there. He immigrated to
Canada and settled rst at Winnipeg. From there
he moved to Walhalla and later homesteaded on
a farm 11 miles west or Sarles, from where he
eventually moved in to Sarles.
Johns naturalization papers say born in Rus-
sia.
Another challenge is that of illiteracy. Our people lived in the
midst of an area (Kuban) of probably the greatest number and va-
riety of languages found anywhere in the world. True, their native
language was German, but they faced communication problems
with Russians, Jews and here with English. Although they were
schooled somewhat in Russia, many spellings were not exact. In
some instances, a name (such as Novorosissjk) was spelled three
different ways on maps. Thus, we may end up using our imagination
to guess at some names and origins. There were three ways to spell
Rosenthal (where Phillip Heldt came from) or was born.
Traditionally, the oldest boy inherited the farm upon the death
of his father. Peter Eckerdts son William wrote to Ron in the 1980s:
Jacob got the farm and my dad got the horses. From this, we may
deduct that Rons great grandfather Jacob Conrad Eckerdt died just
prior to 1892 (what would Peter have done with these horses since he
was then in Lincoln Nebraska?) or prior to 1901 since Jacob returned
to sell this farm (Khutor) in late 1900 or 1901.. Jacob Jr. took a
great risk in returning to Russia to sell it. It must have involved
many hundreds of acres and perhaps into the thousands, to engage
in such a great risk. And so being, it would have had a name. Was
it Nowoselouka (Neuheim)? Was it really spelled Boharsukwa or
close to it? If our Khutor was actually Boharsukwa, it likely was
located between Khutor Nowaselouka and the village of Liebenan.
It may have been large but either not large enough to be in a gazetter
or it was omitted because the compiler of a gazetteer wasnt aware
of its existance. Well what do you think?
Two of Jacob Eckerdts children recorded Neuheim as a birth
place on their death certicates: Katherine Eckerdt Heldt 1876 &
John 1885. If ever the 30 missing years of Huck Eckerdts appear,
indication of Jacob Sr.s (Seniors) migration may be revealed thus
correlating with whether Katherine was truly born in Neuheim or
Huck. Well what do you think?
Since Jacobs Johns records listed him as born in Neuheim in
1885, it is thus possible and perhaps probable that the Eckerdts were
in Neuhiem in 1885 and that Jacobs brother John would have been
about 20 or older at the time.
Villages near where we
believe the Eckerdts, Hel-
dts, and Geyers lived in or
near that are shown on the
reverse:
Alexanderfeld (Leonowko-
je)
Eigenfeld (Wannowskoje)
Leninfeld
Labinskaja
Marienfeld
Natalienfeld (Natalino)
N. -Nilolajweka
Neuheim-most often comes up on
records although sometimes spelled
Nyheim
42
Noworossijsk
Olgenfeld
Rosenfeld
Semenowka
Sokolowo
Telman
Other villages on the outskirts of those listed above:
Alexandrodar
Armawir
Blumenfeld
Bh. Jsobilnaja
Bshidst
Deining
Friedensrecht
Gnadau (e)
Gr. Markosowka
Grigoripoliskaja
Johannesdorf
Karlowka
Kraptkin
Krassnodar (Eketerinodar)-in John Eckerdts obituary where he grew to manhood.
Whether this is true or that Neuheim being close,
it was used as a general area identication.
Krimskaja
Liebenau
Liebental
Lilienfeld
Maikop
Marienfeld (e)
Marientat
Markowsowka
Markstadt
N. Hoffnuna
Neudorf
Neudorf (e)
New-Friedental
Nowo-Alexandrowka
Nowo-Iwanowskoje (estate)
Noworossijsk-Origin of the Schutz family
(John Eckerdts
wife, Amelia)
& some distance from the others South
on Black Sea.
Reinbet
Roshdestwenskoje
Rownoje
Sadowoje
Sonmental (e)
Sternberger
Tichorezk
Tuapse
Wyssokopolje
Agriculture
After establishing the settlement, the rst immigrants turned their atten-
tion to farming. In the beginning their efforts did not meet with great success
because they were unfamiliar with what was needed to properly manage
the soil under the climatic conditions of the region. They could not get any
help or advice from the native people because these people were exclusively
involved with grazing animals. The new settlers, through necessity then,
were forced to experiment for many years, and with hard work, to develop
the knowledge and expertise to develop a productive agricultural system,
or at least the essential (basic) principles for a successful enterprise in the
North Caucasus. With time they found the right combination of farming
methods, which with good management coupled the nature and quality of
the land with the local climate into a successful agriculture.
In the Kuban district the soil, in the main, had a dark-colored surface
layer about ten to twelve inches thick which were very fertile (productive).
(Trans: These are Chernozem soils). To cultivate (till) this soil it required
six to eight horses to pull the (breaking) plow. In the rst few years the
settlers produced spring wheat. The fertility of this newly-broken land
made the wheat crop grow very tall. The heads began to ll with kernels of
grain in profuse quantity. But wind and rain caused this tall-growing crop
to lodge, and because of lodging the kernels did not ll (were shriveled),
and what had promised to be a large yield actually, in reality, was below
average quality. This situation was repeated for several years until some
enterprising farmer decided to try winter wheat (Banatka).
Other stories about agriculture can be read from the article The Ger-
man Colonies in the North Caucasus
These were the crops grown: the high-yielding winter wheat (Banatka),
barley, oats, and in the more difcult situations also millet, corn, ax, mus-
tard, linseed, sunowers, and sugar cane. Wheat was the major cash crop
of the colonists. Millet was fed to the young fowl and corn was feed for
the swine. Plantings of mustard and ax were limited to the needs of the
farmer. The linseed (ax seed) and sunowers were pressed to extract oil,
which was then used in the home. However, any surplus of these oils was
sold in the market. Sugar cane thrived in the North Caucasus.
Typical with all German colonies in Russia, agriculture was essentially
hand work and rudimentary. Primitive hand plows cultivated the land while
the seed was broadcast by hand. Threshing was done by hand-wielded
dreschegel or horsedrawn stone rollers, a process that was followed by a
hand-operated winnowing method. Gradually, the more prosperous farmers
were able to order larger plows and other machinery from Odessa, some of
Can the names
Caracob
Culp or Kulp
Hook or Huck
Neiheim or Nyheim
Rosenthal or Rosendahl
be duducted from these?
43
which had been imported from America. A McCormick reaper was called
Samostetke by the Russians and Flegelmaschin by the Germans. Since
much of the cultivated land lay at some distance from the village, people
were obliged to leave their homes for weeks at a time while the planting
or harvesting was in progress. After harvest, the grain was hauled to the
distant Stanitza (railway station). Caravans were essential to avoid possible
hold-up by gangs of thieves who would dispossess any unwary traveler at-
tempting to make the trip alone. In the large city, it was necessary to have
pre-arranged accommodations at an Einkehr Hof-a large inn with high walls
and a heavy tall gate, where horses and wagons would be safe. As soon
as the grains had been sold to mostly Jewish traders, the villagers lost no
time in leaving for home, taking great care that no wagon would become
separated from the others.
Horse, Cattle, Swine, and Fowl Husbandry
In South Russia as in the North Caucasus the farmers used six to eight
horses per plow. The greater the strength and endurance of the horses the
faster and easier was soil tillage. This is the reason the farmers placed the
highest value on good and strong draft horses.
Each farmer owned eight to twenty-ve horses, depending on the size
of their land holdings, which he needed and used as draft animals to farm
the land. The cost & of keeping and feeding horses was relatively cheap,
in that they could graze in the pasture most of the year.
Water buffalo were common along the Kuban. Occasionally Gypsies or
Asiatics drove by with camels that would spit at the children when teased.
This was considered great sport.
To avoid having animals stolen by the Asiatic Khirgis who were still
partially nomadic, the villagers hired men of that ethnic group to guard the
horses at pasture. Employment of this practice assured farmers of avoiding
the tremendous livestock thievery that often befell numerous settlements
in the North Caucasus.
Milk Industry
The wide, extensive, succulent grasslands of the North Caucasus
provided cattle with nutritious grazing. The low cost of raising cows made
it possible to pursue a protable milking enterprise. In the early years after
settlement, milk, butter, and cheese were produced for the household and
the internal (local) market.
The German red cow was the dominating breed and distinguished
itself in milk production.
Wine
Coming into the village, one would pass the community orchard. Each
household had its personal half-dessiatine size orchard, for a total of 25
dessiatines for the entire village.
The Russians drank German wine with great delight, and they were
the best customers of the German wine cellars. The Kuban and Terek wines
found good acceptance in Russia and were enjoyed because of their good
taste (full bodied) and (alcoholic) strength. In many villageslikely including
Neuheim the German farmers had three to ten desjatines land in vineyards
which brought them comfort and wealth. Many villages had community
vineyards (for example, the one at Wohldemfurst was of 25 desjatines),
in which the proceeds, often of many thousand rubles, owed into the
community cash box and covered the community and state tax liabilities
in this manner. The individual farmer, in these cases, did not have to pay
any taxes either.
Wine-growing became a major enterprise in a very short time. Unfortu-
nately, rust (mildew) and vine lice became pests in the 1890s that destroyed
a large number of vineyards. The farmers were virtually helpless in eradicat-
ing these pests, because they had no knowledge of how to combat them. For
that reason many vineyards were abandoned and once again the land they
had occupied was planted to grain crops. Only in a few colonies was the
wine-growing
industry con-
tinued, and in
these the rust
(mildew) and
lice had not
infested their
vineyards.
Orchards
were grown
most exten-
sively. Every
f ar mer had
an or char d
of about one-
third desjatine
in size.
44
And after villages (likely including Neuheim)
Commerce, Occupations, and Industry
The rst settlers did not have nearby markets for their products. They
were forced to take their products to distant towns, usually about 25 to 70
kilometers from the colonies. Often the people there offered such low prices
that at least part of their produce was brought back home again. The lack
of markets for their produce stymied the growth of the colonies (Trans:
probably means economic growth). First after construction of the trans-
Caucasus railroad in 1875 were more opportunities provided to market their
products. These markets were in larger cities, or in the port and trade city
of Noworossijsk. In those cities the Germans received acceptable prices
for their goods, and in the course of time they received increasingly bet-
ter prices for them. The good prices improved the economic well-being
of the villages.
The trades were represented by blacksmiths, and cabinet makers
(carpenters) which were found in every large village, and also cartwrights,
locksmiths, mechanics, and cobblers. The industries were there from
the beginning; these were represented by windmills, mills with capstans
(driven by horses), steam and motor-driven mills, agricultural (machinery)
factories, brick factories, pottery factories, dairies, cheese factories, and
others. To provide an overall picture of the hand-labor shops and industrial
establishments, those found in Wohldemfurst and Alexanderfeld can be
used to illustrate the kind.
There were numerous brick factories which produced good building
material. For this reason the colonists were soon in good position to abandon
their quickly-constructed earth houses, and in their place built nice and
roomy houses and barns.
School
Each community was intent I upon building a school house as soon as
it had the means. This building, after construction, also was used as a prayer
house (church). The Russian government repeatedly offered to provide ma-
terials for construction of school houses, but the colonists strictly declined
the offer because they feared that if they accepted the governments offer
they would come under certain dependence to the Russian state. Then in
the course of time this would result in establishment of Russian teachers
in the school and would lead to Russication of the German elementary
schools.
In the course of time each village had a schoolhouse and one or
two salaried teachers. The educational level of the colonies was greatly
advanced. There werent any people in the colonies who didnt know the
alphabet.
Christianity
The evangelical communities belonged to the Evangelical Lutheran
Church in Russia, which maintained a prefect (provost) in the North Cau-
casus. The seat was in Rostow on the Don River; the prefect was Pastor of
Tome. The prefect had jurisdiction in parishes of:
Jekaderinodar-Noworossijsk (Pastor Theodore Kludt) with congre-
gations at Neuheim, Gnadau, Markosowka, Michaelsfeld, Pilenkofeld,
Eigenfeld, Rosenfeld, Alexanderfeld, Nowo-IwanowskoJe, Friedental,
Marienfeld, Natalienfeld, Sonnental.
This may explain the aquaintance of Amalie and John. Lydia said
that they were Presbyterian (obviously in Sarles) She said that she never
observed her dad to attend church services, but always dressed up and
never worked on Sundays.
Community Life
The large one-room schoolhouse served as a church on Sunday, which
nearly everyone attended. A bell hung in a tower on the school grounds was
rung regularly every evening at 6 P.M. by the schoolmaster. For gatherings,
the bell would be rung by the Elder Schulz. Being of a pietistic disposition,
two or three nearby villages Markosow and Lilienfeld would share in
periodic revival meetings that would result in numerous remarkable ex-
periences. On the occasions of larger congregational gatherings, people
would travel the distances to Alexanderfeld or Eigenfeld. However, such
affaires were only for grown-ups; the children were obliged to remain at
home. The services were conducted by laymen, without the presence of a
pastor in most cases.
A. Assmus, the Pastor of Ekaterinodar (Krasnodar) Filiale, was
responsible for a large parish that included Michaelsfeld, Gros-Mar-
kosowka, Pilenfeld, Eigenfeld, Rosenfeld, Alexanderfeld, Arnoldsheim,
Rosental, Lilienfeld, Sonnental, Klein-Markosowka probably several other.
During his absence, the schoolmaster would read the sermons, of-
ficiate at funerals, etc. For weddings, the couples would travel
to the village where the Pastor happened to be that particular Sunday, or
even go as far as Ekaterinodar or Novorossisk, wherever his ofcial place
of residence might be.
At various times of the year one village engaged in celebrations. Easter
was a very special time for merrymaking, one of the events being an egg
race. Two rows of hard-boiled eggs were spaced out at regular intervals in
lanes approximately fty yards in length. Two ponies with riders were
positioned at one end of the lanes. Fleet-of-foot contestants, firmly
grasping the saddle stirrups, and with the horses at gallop, would run
alongside, pick up as many eggs as possible and drop them into the waiting
aprons of girl assistants along the way.
Many of the barns and houses were covered with heavily thatched
roofs, with the exterior of the barns also covered with straw material to
afford greater insulation against the cold. Even though the climate was
considered mild and all types of fruits and berries ourished in the area, it
would at times become sufciently cold to freeze the Kuban River.
Occasionally a group of Asiatic Nomads riding through the vil-
lage would create unusual excitement, causing people to scurry into
their homesites and bar the gates to prevent possible thievery. The
Cossacks would ride through town like cowboys, waving and shooting
their guns carelessly. If an innocent person got killed by them, there
was not justice brought about because of it. At such times, it was
someones responsibility to hurry to the bell tower at the school, and
loudly ring the bell to warn the inhabitants of the impending danger.
In general, the villagers lived like one huge family, equally aware of one
anothers eccentricities and good points. They shared each others problems
and helped one another as the need required. Luxuries were unheard of and,
by the very pious, were considered a curse instead of a benet. There was
nothing to fear from one another, and with the exception of an occasional
st-ght as a result of too much imbibing, life was peaceful, simple and
harmonious.
Notes from tape-recording by Lydia Sampson in August, September,
1986: The Kuban River on which the village of Neuhiem was, was a deep
gorge. The River roared here - loud roaring sounds. A makeshift bridge, foot-
bridge, was across it here. There was a cave near the village; water ran out
of the back wall of the cave into a pool which was clear and drinkable. The
bottom was nice white sand, clean and shallow and they bathed here.
The mountains behind the village were snow-covered and would melt
in the spring, swelling the river considerably.
The orchards were lush with crab apples, plumsmuskmelons and
watermelons were the usual crops.
Very little snow there -never wore coats or shoes; now and then a
snowfall, but not lasting long enough to barely make a snowbal1. One
of Jacob Juniors family told that Jacob Junior born in 1894, remembered
playing along the Kuban River, ooding in the orchards, ice from the trees,
and about troops riding thru Neuheim and hiding under beds and about
living in the village, but traveling out of the village to their farmland.
Peter Geyer had a horse-wagon called a Democrat wagon which
they would go off to their peach and cherry orchards with. Peter was the
best educated man in the village and handled all the affairs of the village
-laison between village and Russian Government and village mayor. Latin
was a third language he learned and used it in correspondence even when
he arrived here.
The only law and order was with the Czar when he wanted something.
Otherwise, discretion was careless such that if you got railroaded into go-
ing to jail, there was not court to help youGerman-made courts were no
defense from the Czar.
Af t er r eset t l i ng i n t he Uni t ed St at es wi t h i t s r el at ed
pioneering hardships, many longed for the peace and quiet of their native
villages n Russia, and would have returned had the funds been available.


45
46
Conscription was via names drawn from a barrel in each community. According
to Johns obituarys (which appear to have errors), he entered the Army at 21 in 1885
and served 5 years. However, his son Albert said: When he got out of the Army,
he started a wagon business. He was called back into the Army again and instead of
returning to this service, left the country. Seems that he left Russia in 1893, creates a
mystery. Either he was in the Army eight years or he didnt go in until 1888.
Russian expansion toward the Caucasus collided with the Ottoman and Persian
empires as early as the sixteenth century, when Russian forces reached the Terek River
and Kabarda, just north of the great mountain chain. For the next three centuries hostili-
ties continued. In war after war with one or another of these powers or their surrogates
and satraps, Russians generally managed to dictate or negotiate treaties which ended the
bloodshed and gained most of the current Czars objectives. Thus, over a long period
of time, the Russian Empire ultimately extended to the Araxes River.
In Georgia, (Tiess) raids and revolutions prevailed during the early 1800s. The
Moslem people did not want to be under the rule of the Czar.
Even though Russian hegemony was clearly established, complete pacication
of the conquered territories was an altogether different matter. Guerrilla warfare raged
intermittently and occurred as late as 1859. What is more, when the numerous racial
stocks populating the subjugated lands werent united in active opposition to the Rus-
sians, they preyed on each other. The region swarmed with antipathies and racial vio-
lence, which were nally suppressed only by the heavy hand of the Soviet government.
In the 1990s, those ancient hatreds once again
embroiled the region in ethnic conict.
Germans who settled in the Caucasus
looked to the government for protection from
their predatory neighbors. In this reasonable
expectation they were all too often sorely
disappointed, particularly in the earliest settle-
ment years, just as the rst colonists along the
Volga had been a century earlier. One could
imagine a certain reluctance on the part of
local government ofcials to extend protec-
tion to a people who enjoyed exemption from
military service. Nevertheless, even when the
favored people were nally compelled to serve
in the armed forces as other Russian citizens
did, the German settlers ultimately found the
only reliable protection was that which they
themselves provided.
Some of the following are portions from
a continuation of Mr Seibel s family reminis-
cences begun in the Spring 1991 Journal. Mr.
Seibel is a retired United States Air Force lo-
gistician, now living in California. Copyright
by the Author, used with permission.
The Manifesto and Statute on Universal
Military Service was signed into law by Czar
Alexander II on January I, 1874. The law
established a national draft system, dened
somewhat more humane conditions of mili-
tary service, and brought an end to the almost
feudal servitude which had prevailed in the
Russian armed forces until then. Prior to 1861
enlisted men were required to serve 25 years
in an environment so harsh and brutal that it
literally constituted a life sentence in what
amounted to penal surroundings. The revisions
of 1861 reduced the term of service to nine
years but failed to address the inhumane treat-
ment accorded enlisted men. The Manifesto
of 1874 went far toward addressing the many
abuses. However, it also deleted exemptions
from military service long accorded ethnic
Germans and other groups.
Two key provisions of the 1874 1aw
dened terms of service and continuing mili-
tary obligation:
1. The total term of service in the army
[land forces] for those conscripted by lot is
xed at 15 years, of which six years are on
active duty and nine years in the reserve.
2. The state militia is composed of all
male inhabitants between conscription age
(i.e., those who have reached the age of 20
by January 1 of the year in which the levy is
made) and the age of 40 who are not enrolled
in the standing army but are capable of bearing arms.
It was this relatively enlightened document which seemed the nal straw to
descendants of the Germans brought to Russia by Catherine the Great in the latter part
of the eighteenth century. These settlers - or colonists, as they preferred to be known,
believed passage of the 1874 law violated Catherines guarantee that German immi-
grants and their descendants would never be required to serve in military forces. As a
result, colonists began the rst large-scale planning for emigration from Russia.
Meanwhile, their sons were being drafted and many of them from the Caucasus
area served on the southern frontier. Most of these conscripts found the experience an
appalling interruption of their accustomed bucolic existence, while their parents fretted
about the imagined evils the boys were being subjected to by the Russian Orthodox
Church. One of Johns grandsons was told that the method used to draft recruits was
by drawing names from a barrel in each village.
One had to serve a full tour of duty and reenlist to become a non-commissioned
ofcer. It appears quite certain that John did not re-enlist, however, his status as a
noncommissioned ofcer is veried on his passport. In this capacity the young soldier
was sometimes called upon to purchase feed for the horses. Mr. Seibels grandfather
recalled vividly in later years one such buying expedition. Together with another
enlisted man, he hitched a team to a supply wagon and set out on the long journey.
After a time the pair came to a high pass between Tiis and Baku. Seibel said the
THE ARMY JOHN SERVED
47
pass was so high that they could look down into the valleys and see only blue and no
detail. As they rode through the pass, Seibel napped out of sight behind the driver.
They were suddenly accosted by two men who at rst just asked for tobacco. Think-
ing the driver unarmed and alone, the brigands soon demanded the horse and wagon
as well. At this point young Seibel jumped up, rie in hand. The suddenness of his
appearance so startled the brigands that they tumbled backward over the sides of the
pass. Georg, the driver asked, Arent you going to shoot them? No, Seibel
replied. Why waste the shells? Theyll be dead before they hit bottom. But wasting
the Czars ammunition had nothing to do with Seibels refusal to shoot the brigands.
The truth of the matter was that he had an aversion to needless bloodshed. His unvaried
practice while in Russia after his army service was to avoid killing raiding Tatars if
at all possible. Mortality aside, it was a prudent policy as well, for the Tatars always
required a death for a death.
Mmagnicent scenery as in the area where he probably served, a location very
near the summit of the great Caucasus chain. Sweeping vistas opened to the eye on
almost every side. It is amazing to see large areas of green far below, interspersed
with what looked to be vast elds of snow. The white was in fact extensive apricot
orchards which were then in bloom. Soldiers often saw a lot of such scenery since
army bivouacs and encampments where they served were often extremely remote
from other human settlements.
Moreover, Johns entire tour of duty, may have been spent high in the Caucasus
Mountains. Most soldiers were not allowed a leave to visit home. Even if he had been
granted sufcient time off, getting from the remote area where he was posted to a rail-
head in Tiis required several days travel. After that he faced an extremely roundabout
journey by rail along the Black Sea coast to Tuapse, then northeast to Armawir on the
Rostov-Petrovsk line where he could catch a train for Prokhladnaya. From there he
would have had to change trains again in order to reach the nearest rail point to his
home village. Going overland by foot-or even horseback-along the Georgian Military
Highway would have taken even longer. Chances are good that had he been granted
such leave, John would have been unable to afford the transportation costs.
At the time John served in the Russian army, the troops were equipped with a
rearm which originated in America. The Berdan rie, known as the Berdanga along
the Caucasian frontier, was designed and produced by Col. Hiram Berdan of the U.S.
Army Ordnance Department during the American Civil War Berdan also pioneered a
new primer for use in a brass case he had developed somewhat earlier. The case was
a signicant technical advance as was the system which Berdan developed for rapid
and low cost drawing of the brass. Between 1868 and 1870 the Russian government
purchased 30,000 ries of the .58 caliber Berdan I pattern. In 1871 Russians devel-
oped an improved form, the Berdan II, which red a .42 caliber center-re cartridge.
The cartridge is of military signicance since it was the rst center re bottle-necked
cartridge which had an outside Berdan primer. It was the beginning of high-powered
small bore ries with great range and accuracy. The cartridge developed a muzzle ve-
locity of 1,440 feet per second. Though only a single shot rie, marksmen who were
skilled at laying down rapid re, scooping up and keeping four cartridges between
the ngers of one hand and some in their mouth as they red.
The rie was only a single-shot but red its round with such high velocity that
the bullet would carry a mile. Accuracy at such ranges was questionable, of course,
though claims were made that it was possible to bring down a man at that distance. At
ranges of a quarter to even a half mile, absolute accuracy for any competent marksman
was claimed.
3
Nor was the fact that the rie was not a repeater any signicant deter-
rent to rapid re. Marksmen became procient at loading rapidly as well as shooting
accurately, and it was this skill which may have him in such good stead in later years
when he may have helped defend his village from raiding Tatars.
Johns recollections of service life were undoubtedly attenuated to a considerable
degree by the passage of time, for the hardship of military service was something
more than just idle chatter. Service for enlisted men in the Czars army was even more
grueling than their former lives as peasants.
Stolen food was a rare treat since their daily diet consisted of a bowl of millet
mush for breakfast and about a pound of bread also issued in the morning. The bread
had to last the entire day. Other than this bread, there wasnt any lunch. Supper was
the inevitable cabbage soup, made from fresh cabbage in the summer and sauerkraut in
the winter. Some commanders substituted stinging nettle for the cabbage and pocketed
the rations money. A small portion of meat came with the cabbage soup. In some units
it was not unusual to include the eye of the animal as part of the ration.
The rewood and the camp stove on which the soup was cooked were there only
for the convenience of the ofcers. The mens barracks had no heat even in the middle
of winter. When coming in off guard duty in the winter, it was a common occurrence
for men to open their greatcoat and shake out chunks of ice that had blown in there
in the form of snow. The barracks had a wood-burning stove, but even in the worst of
winters the men were not issued fuel.
When a mans enlistment expired, the entire regiment lined up and the man being
discharged had to exchange clothes with the most ragged soldier of his size.
Those whose parents could afford it sent money for new uniforms in which their
sons could return home. Others went in the most miserable of rags.
Discharge, of course, did not exempt a soldier from the obligation of future
service.
John was listed as an ofcer on his passport.
WHERE JOHN WAS
LIKELY STATIONED:
IN ANCIENT TIMES the
legendary Argonauts sailed
to Colchis in search of the
olden Fleece. They saw an
eagle ying over the Caucasus
Range toward the spot where
rometheus was supposedly
chained to a rock, and some
time later, they purportedly
heard him groan.
The area was covered by dense
forest, intertwined with lianas-
impassable and lifeless, envel-
oped by the mist of hot rains.
There was decaying vegetation
everywhere. Grass did not
grow in the somber, damp
and suffocating woods. Birds
did not sing, but bats bred in
numbers.
And still, this godfor-
saken land had long been a
place where people had chosen
to settle. Some 2,500 years ago
Greek merchants founded a
large trade colony on the site of
present-day Sukhuml. The Greeks got along fairly well with the indigenous Caucasian population
and conducted a brisk barter trade. Even today ancient coins bearing the imprint of Hellenic gods
and goddesses are swept out of the sea onto the shore.
In the rst century B.C. the peace-loving Greeks were replaced by the warlike Romans,
who came here as conquerors. The indigenous population was driven into the mountains or an-
nihilated, and a military fortress, an outlying advance post of the Roman Empire, sprang up out
of the ruins of the colonial city.
The caravan route (the Transcaucasian stretch of the Great Silk Route passed through the
area connecting China with the Near East) became a warpath.
After the Roman iron legions came the lightening-quick Arab cavalry. Then, one by one,
came the conquering Byzantines, Persians, Mongols, Genoans and, nally, Turks.
The thriving towns of the area became slave markets. Beautiful and graceful women captured
In the mountains were taken as slaves to the Golden Horde and Mediterranean countries.
In those times the very word road implied danger. Setting out to cultivate his plot, the
farmer steered clear of well-traveled paths and took his entire family into the eld with him. He
carried both a plowshare and a sword to protect, the lives of his family.
Two portraits were rolled up in Lydias Morton, Illinois closet. These in 1988, hung on the
living room wall of Johns granddaughter Barbara McMahon. One was as shown here of John
and the other of his wife or girlfriend Amali.
Lydia Geyer spoke of them as newlyweds, prior to their departure in 1892 or 1893. It
doesnt seem likely that he would have had these portraits done with his uniform on if he had
been released from active duty and then was married. It appears more likely the portraits were
made while he was still in the military and likely at the time of his marriage. Perhaps he was
stationed in or near Novorosiskk?
Amali and The Schutz Family
Schutz is not an uncommon name. In France there was in the 1980s, a Schutz beer. Schutz,
like Eckerdts are also found in Switzerland. The name usually originates from Hesse and is as-
sociated with Bessarabian Germans and peculiar to at least 4 settlements around Odessa. The
Schuts found in several Bessarbian villages, Ron knew not of any way to connect them with our
Alois or John. Alois likely had many brothers and sisters but no way is known to determine this
or nd out who they were. We only know that our Alois and Rosalines family last resided in
Noworossijsk. In Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Indiana, one in 1100 will have this name.
The only other hint is from Fred Heldt teasing Amalis daughter Amelia about being Polish.
Perhaps this Schutz family was of thousands of Germans who lived for many decades or several
centuries in Poland. We know not why they last lived in Noworossijsk or anything about their
circumstances there other than very few notations reguarding 7 or 8 of their children.
To me, the names Alois and Eugenie sound more French than Polish. They were used more
by people in South Russia than in the Volga Region. They are also names found in higher classes,
or at least more educated people. The same is true for Rosalie. Your family obviously did not
follow the normal migration patterns and broke out of the farmer class when they moved to the
cities. This makes it more difcult to trace. Jo Ann Kuhr, AHSGR Genealogy Researcher.
340 km: Novorossiisk, an important port in Tsemesk Bay.
Novorossiisk was founded in 1838 on the position of an earlier Russian fort. The Regional
Museum contains material on the history of the town and the region, particularly on the revolution-
ary events of 1905 and the republic of Novorossiisk. There is a monument commemorating
the defence of the town during the second world war: it was the only town on the Caucasian
Riviera to be temporarily occupied by the Germans. The monument stands in Heroes Squre;
and every hour throughout the day the bells of Novorossiisk play a tune composed by Dmitry
Shostakovich.
The town is an important centre of the cement industry. The port is connected by rail with
the rest of Russia. Chernomorskaya Hotel, 42 Street of the Soviets (tel. 32 34). In the 1900s it
became a tough place - Mofa town.
At Novorossiisk the road leaves the Black Sea, climbs up the western tip of the Caucasus,
and after the pass known as the Wolfs Gate runs down into the Kuban, passing through Gorny,
Nizhny Bakansky and Krymskaya. 150 km (490 from Sochi): Krasnodar (p. 843).
The trek of the Schutz family is very mysterious! Maybe they lived neighbors to Jews.
The Jew and the German in Russia had much in common. It is grieving to consider that Uncle
Adolph may have been among those who killed communities of Jews, such as in 1907. Jacob
Rubenstien a semi-famous New York composer was one who escaped this - rode off on a
soldiers horse after killing him and came here.
Rosalie had 20 pregnancies.
Our cousin Miriam, who is John Eckerdts wifes brothers granddaughter in England,
believes there is a strong Jewish inuence in the Eckerdt-Schootz family. Miriam thinks
we are Jewish, or at least that the Schootz family was Jewish. She has suspicions that the
Eckerdt family was Jewish. One of the reasons that she suspects the Eckerdts are Jewish,
is because the names of the brothers were all names out of the Bible: John, Jacob, and
Peter. Jacob was the oldest in North Dakota and Peter lived in Nebraska.
Notes and deductions from investigation into the ancestry of the Schutz family from
the area of Eketarinodar Novorossiss South Russia:
About 1965, Linda McMahon sent to Myriam a large photo of the mother, father,
49
brothers of Ameli (Schutz) Eckerdt. Two photos: one of the mother
and the other of the entire family. Both photos were labeled on back
by the same persons. Myriam thought that her mother and family
spoke Yiddish -a convoluted German that Jews spoke in Germany.
The claim that this is proven by disecting the labels on the photos,
Lindas recall of difculty in relating to other German and Myriams
mothers reluctance to speak the language they used at home. If it were
a mere dialect, transfer is easy but the Yiddish is not understandable
by Germans or Yiddish-speakers cannot understand any dialect of
German (she claimed).
Miriam said These people probably so sickened by constant
persecutions almost succeeded in hiding their origin. We here are now
awakening something I think they wanted to be undisturbed and laid
to rest forgotten about. Myriams mother said that the family was
Lutheran but Myriams mother was more Russian Orthodox than the
Russians themselves. Further: Aunt Linda writes: My father (John
Eckerdt) sent money over to bring my mothers (Amelia (Schutz)
Eckerdt) father, mother and uncle Carlto the U.S.. He then also sent
money over to Russia to bring his brother Jacob & family to this
country & LATER sent for uncle Conrad (mothers brother also) &
family over here. They only stayed 5 years.
And then she tells about the Jewish custom - peculiar only to
Jews: sitting Shevah practiced in the home when she was a little girl.
This kind of puts the clincher on the Schutzs being Jewish descent
according to Miriam Maria Graude (Leos wife) looks quite German
so says Myriam. Just what was the extent of this Jew inuence? Might
Leo be pure German-Jew? Married a German? South Russia being
close to Turkey customs and Yiddish inltrate this community up in
or by Eketerinodar that much? Can we lead ourselves to more exact
conclusions by locating other Jews who came from Eketerinodar and
then nd the exact neighborhood from where Schutzs & Eckerdts
came from to help us verify whatever may come of it? Well, now
the Eckerdts cant be Jewish with the blue eyes and a name like that!
Whoaa- take a good look: Myriam nds the following: (about John
Eckerdt) In the photo his name was JOHANAN written Johan - ap-
parently the name Johan with the line across the top of the n was
reduced from Johanan which is Jewish.
At any rate, from all this, Myriam is showing strong inuence
towards the Eckerdt family to be Jewish also. Myriam tells that her
mothers sister (and of course then Amelia (Schutz) Eckerdts sister):
Antonie was leaving after the last war in Moscow. (WWII) Hopefully
we may nd something about Uncle Carls descendents from a search
there. Another indication is the meal peculiar to Jews only traditionally
xed on New Years called mullisen. My mother, Lydia(Eckerdt (John
& Amelias daugter and sister to Linda) Knappen recalls her father
50
Dana Paul & Annette Schootz, 2418 LaCasa Dr., Henderson, NV 89014 702-
898-0178
Stephanie Gaspano, 1407 Paseo Robles, San Dimas, CA 91773
A number of details we know about the Schutz family were supplied by Leo
Schutzs granddaughter Miriam Peters (Maria Kasakowitz)
Johns obituary says Amali married John Eckerdt in 1888 and was born in
1864.
Secondly, we know that her parents and one brother Carl came (according
to 1910 citizenship and census records) through Ellis isle on Aug. 15, 1903 arrive
on the Vaterland from Noworossiske through Antwerp. Carl came to live with and
near Amali and John Eckerdt in 1904. Carl was 19, (norn Nov 1884), had brown
eyes and hair, 58 and was born in Noworossiske. Linda wrote my father (John
E) sent money over to bring my mothers father, mother and uncle Carl. Another
brother, seemingly Conrad and family came to visit the Eckerdts in the early 1900s.
John and Amalis daughter Linda told of this and that their little daughter died there.
The practiced setting Shiva leading Miriam to suspect that they were Jewish. Ron
Knappen has Louis Schutzs Lutheran Conrmation Bible as shown here.
My only comments about sitting Shiva are as follows. Ask an old timers
and they will tell you that in the old days the family gathered around the bed
(or pallet) of the dying family member until that person was dead. Why this one
particular incident in the persons memory has the dying child on the oor, I dont
know. If was in homesteading days, they may not have had a bed.
No matter how much Myriam wants to have Jewish ancestry, I cannot believe
that your Eckert family was of this ancestry. (I will accept it if you can prove me
wrong.)
Less Myriam question my authority, she might be interested in knowing that
I was a translator for two years in Germany and taught German for twenty years.
Something was lacking during her years in Heidelberg if she confused the plural
possessive adjective (eure) for a proper name Lauren. (Eure = your)
Sincerely,
Mrs. Jo Ann Kuhr
AHGSR Genealogy Researcher
4-8-1986
Photographs found in the midst of Lydias, Pollys pictures and several that were
in Miriams possession helped to indentify some of our Schutzs. These as shown
here are dated 1908 but one appears to be a 1890s photo of Alois and Rosalie.
Several family members remarked about Carls talent of entertaining at barn
dances and other events with his accordian. He was popular with the girls and
quite a drinker.
Chuck and Barbara Horner shared with us their ndings in local newspapers
of 1909 telling that Carl was using a crank-windup victrola to play his accordian
with. By doing so, he learned American music and it likely helped him to learn to
sing in English instead of German.
Next, according to the 1910 U.S. Census, seven of the 14 children were still
alive. Carl was listed as a farmer, 165 pounds, 25 years old and took our naturaliza-
tion papers 6-21-1920. These 7 would have included Amali who died in _______,
Adolph who appears to be an army ofcer likely shot during or just after the revolution
(The Russians did away with German Army ofcers). Leopold was shot during the
revolution by his own workers in a Noworossiske cement factory; a baker, butcher
and conductor who were shot during the revolution and the seventh: Carl who was
probably the only survivor after 1924. Willis Friske told Ron Knappen that he took
care of Carls horses in the early 1900s during a time while Carl was sick. He said
that Carl raised some type of special horses and lived on part of John and Amali
Eckerdts farm across the road and east of Johns. Lydia said that Alois, Rosalie and
Carl Schutz lived in a home of some type across from the rural school on John and
Amalis property. Lydia recalled that here Grandmother Rosalie was never seen not
carrying her Bible. She told of how her Grandfather Aloiss leg was enlarged unbe-
lievably prior to his 1910 death (dropsy). Next, Carl married Wilhelmina Luedtke
who we know only as having German ancestry and they have a daughter Ema and
a son Leopold. Their whereabouts was unknown after around 1910. Someone in
Sarles led us to suspect that Carl became unpopular with John Eckerdt. He became
a machinist with the railroad, was transferred to North Judson, Indiana. While there,
Rosalie died. He was later transferred to Los Angeles. Myriam suspected that the
Schootzs moved to Pulaski, California. Ema said that they moved to California when
she was in the 5th grade. She spoke of uncles named Luedtke.
51
The second page of a letter from Vera Anapolsky Zenkovskys grand-
daughter in the late 1980s: about Veras son bro., as I think I have mentioned
before, that is a taboo subject, although I feel sure that if she really wanted to
she could make contact, possibly, as Vera used to write many years ago now
to his wife. Knowing my mother, if she decided to do it she would go to
any lengths. However, that matter is a closed book to me, but perhaps you
may be able to persuade her. I understand there was a murky background
and shady dealings concerning my uncle which is why my mother wont
mention his name.
I do know that my grandmother who died in New York in 1963 used
to send things to her son in Russia so there must have been an address. But
again, who has it now? I dont even know what happened to her husband
after her death.
52
According to labels on the back of pics, D&F are both Leo. But the timing and ages dont jive
- particularly with E and B being both the same womand and if so were there additional kids
besides Vera, Victor and the other girl? 1895 for the large pic would be reasonable because that
would be their last family picture before coming to the U.S. And the earlier picture with Adolph
at 25, Carl at 18 and possibly Leo at 25 might even make good sense aligning with I and J, it
makes more sense to assome A & B are alike as well as C and D but B & D in earlier years.
fixing this dish on New
Years until they moved to
town. But she says they
fixed meals from other
lands also.
Descendents of Ja-
cob Eckardt exclaim there
to be no Jewish inuence
and say No, they even
read German newspapers
at home! My mother
also says that Jacobs wife
would not speak or learn to
speak English.
On 1-20-1970, Myrian
wrote to Cass County Department of
Health, Cash Court House, Logansport,
IN 46947; about our Schutz. They
found no Schutz, so they recommended
the Pulaski County Health Ofce, 111
North Monticello Street, Winamac, IN.
Ron followed up on this in 1986; there
was no Schootz there. In around 1990;
Ema said that the family moved to North
Judson and when in the 5th grade moved
to California.
Mriam wrote: I must recap what
must be done in order of priorities; we
must get hold of death certicates of the
old Shutzes: Alois and Rosalie, and/or
any document that mentions Rosalies
maiden name. Were they married in
Germany or Russia??? Death, or other certicates of Carl, Conrad and other Eck-
erdts and Schutzes in order to obtain more information. Please, get in touch with the
MacMahons (your late aunties family) in order to obtain all old family photos which
you could copy and send me for translation. Linda sent me a lot of these pictures and
I regret very much that my own daughter Linda interfered and sent them back to your
auntie Linda PRIOR of my making copies of the above-mentioned photosI remember, I
was very angry with my daughter for doing such a stupidity: sending back the pictures
before I could copy them. Now, we must chase after these pictures lest they disappear
completely. Please, do this as soon as possible.
A lot of questions could be solved by obtaining these photos. Moreover, though
it is difcult to obtain other photos as you complain in your last letter, nevertheless, -I
wish you luck in contacting the Eckerdts. If I were you, -I would put more emphasis on
tracing the Shutzes, because: I suspect a streak of Jewishness in the Shutzes rather than
the Eckerdts. However, I am most intrigued by John Eckerdts brother Jacob. This is a
typically JEWISH name. No doubt about it. Moreover, no German, especially in Russia
in those days of pogroms would have given his daughter an even more conspicuous
name of RACHEL, unless that Jacob Eckerdt was of Jewish extraction.
Had Jacobs daughter Rachel been born in America, -I wouldnt have
raised the question of the name Rachel. Again, I repeat, that in those
days of cossak pogroms all over (especilly!!! - in Southern Russia) the
mere mention of the name Rachel would have been enough to subject
such a family to incredible cruelties from the fanatical cossaks . . . .
It is simply unthinkable that a father who was not a Jew - would have
subjected his entire family to persecutions only and because he gave
his daughter he gave his daughter that most conspicuous Jewish name
- Rachel. Indeed, not only he must have been a Jew, or of Jewish extrac-
tion (Perhaps even converted to the Lutheran faith), but he must have
been a very orthodox Jew, because: he ignored the potential dangers
that this name Rachel could bestow upon his entire family.
Dear Ron:
Enclosed is the translation you requested. This was apparantly a New
Testament the Ladies Society (Frauenverein) presented to the cor-
mands in memory of their conrmation.
The squiggle above the u is a fancy umlaut.
An Umlaut is a symbol consisting of two dots, which can be placed
above an a, o, or u. This alters the wound of the vowel.
The name cna be spelled Schutz or Schuetz and get the same sound
in German.
This is likely one of Grandma Amelia Schutz Eckerdts brothers.
Translators note: The mark above the u in Schutz only signi-
es the presence of the vowel u in written German and is not to be
confused with and umlaut eg. u
Text from reverse: The New Testament of our Lord and Healer Jesus
Christ according to Dr. Martin Luthers translation. Revised edition.
Cologne 1884. Printed for the British and foreign Bible Company.
Ofce in Berlin: Southwest Wilhelmstrasse. Ofce in Frankfurt am
Main: Hochestrasse. Ofce in Cologn: Rubenstrasse No. 18
Leo married Maria
Graud. We believe they are
shown in a wedding photo
here with Carl and Adolph
standing behind. Ron has
not located anyone with the
name Graud. Nothing more
is known about her. Miriam
said she appears to be very
German. Miriam said that
a son died young and there
then were two daughters.
Vera and Eugenie. Eugenie
became a Sapagina. Ron
acquired from The Tolstoy
Foundation 1972 Moscow
Telephone directory pag-
es. He prepared letters in
Russian to Sapaginas and
Anapolskys in Moscow and
heard from only two Anop-
olskys. Myrian said that
her mothers (Veras) sister
Antonie was leaving after
the last war in Moscow.
Ver a mar r i ed an
Anapolsky. Upon visit-
ing with Anapolskys, Ron
learned that it is an old
Polish Jew name. Vera had
54
a daughter Miriam and son Vadlimer. When the WWII German Army retreated,
Vera and children as well as many other German-Russians went with them as far
as Belgrade. They lived there for a spell quite comfortably. When the Russians
followed in pursuit, Myriam at about 18, escaped Yugoslovia disguised as a Jewess.
It was then she took on the name Maria Kasakowitz. Miriam attended school in
Israel, became an Israeli ghter pilot. She embraced Judism and later became a
very highly paid linguist or interpreter. At one time in her career, she and her rm
occupied and worked from an entire oor of a hotel in Moscow. She must have
enjoyed dancing as she wrote in one letter to Linda McMahon that she would travel
such as to Paris where she would go dancing. She married Peter Kasakowitz and
they had a daughter Linda (Napier) who is mentioned and pictured here in. Miriam
lived in Scotland for 6 years near St. Andrews. Peter had been transferred with Joint
Service Schools for Linguists. He had been working 13 years for war ofce.
Vera became a nurse with the German Army. Vadlimir joined the German
Army. He was captured and imprisoned in Russia. Miriam would not talk about
her brother. When Ron asked her about him, she discontinued corresponding with
him. Her daughter Linda siad that she would clam up anytime he was mentioned,
it was a taboo subject, shady dealings, a closed book to Linda. If Miriam would
have not been blocked by this obstacle she could have made contact as he wrote to
Vadlimirs wife. She had the ways and means to connect. Linda said to Ron: but
perhaps you may be able to persuade her. Vera used to send things to her son.
Miriam told Linda that her mother disowned her. Miriam told Linda very little about
her past and about the Schutzes. She said there must have been something murky
in their early relationship. Ron hoped that Vadlimer may have had knowledge of
where other Schutz family members were. Vera came to the U.S. in 9-27-1949,
married Professor Alex Zenkovsky who had also recently come from Kiev.
The following letter is from Betty Jean (Mrs. Serge A. Zenkovsky), 1224 S.
Peninsula Drive, #507, Daytona Beach, Florida 32118, January 10, 1991:
After we spoke on the telephone at such length and I had hung up, I recalled
that Vera Leopoldovna had, indeed, mentioned once that she had some relatives
out West in the U.S. someplace.
I do need to point out that Vera Leopoldovna Anapolsky was the second wife of
my father-in-law, Professor Alexander V. Zenkovsky, who came to the U.S.A. with
his rst wife, Elena M. Zenkovsky, and his son, Professor Serge A. Zenkovsky, in
1949. If you got the date of arrival in the U.S.A. for Vera L. from the date of arrival
of Alexander V. Zenkovskynamely, 8-27-49, you should recheck the data, on
Vera L. Anapolsky, because she most denitely did not come to the U.S.A. with the
Zenkovsky family. Alexander met Vera only ,in the mid-1950s, after his rst wife,
Elena, died in 1953. After Elenas death, Alexander was living in New York City and
was expected by his son and family friends to remarry the widow of an old family
friend whose name I forget. However, he found a room to rent in the apartment of
Vera L. Anapolsky, who had an apartment in New York City somewhere, and had
been renting a room there to some other elderly Russian man who died.
Alexander moved into the room rented to him by Vera L. Anapolsky. Subse-
quently, in 1955 or 1956, they married, much to the surprise of my husband, Profes-
sor Serge
A. Ze -
nkovsky.
From 1954-1958 my husband and I were living in Cambridge, Mass., where my
late husband, Serge, was teaching at Harvard University. His dad, Alexander, stayed
with us in 1954 or 1955 a while, then decided to move back to New York, which
is when he took up residence in the apartment of Vera L. Anapolsky, in the rented
room. After they marriedprobably in late 1955we visited them a few times, Vera
being a very hospitable person, as was Alexander Zenkovsky. They apparently got
along very well and held each other in high esteem.
On one of these visits Vera mentioned that her father had been killed by the
Bolsheviksindeed, I understood that her whole family (that would be brothers,
father, and other relativesmaybe, also, her rst husband, Anapolsky)- had been
wiped out by the Bolsheviks. In New York City Vera was working as a seamstress
in some textile dress manufacturing companyin fact, I believe it was for the cos-
tumes for the Metropolitan Opera and/or Ballet. (By the way, she taught me how
to hem properly.)
As to her being JewishI certainly doubt it, as Professor Alexander Zenkovsky
was a devout Christian and came from a devout Christian family. His brother was
a priest in the Russian Orthodox Church who at that time was Dean of the Russian
Orthodox Theological Seminary in Paris. Alexander was in the self-government of
the Ukraine, having been born and brought up in Kiev, Russia. He worked closely
with the last Minister of the Interior under Nickolas II, Stolypin, who was assas-
sinated by terrorists in 1911. The Zenkovskys were obliged to ee Russia during
the Civil War in 1920-21, when theyand my husband, Serge, who was 12 at the
timeemigrated through Constantinople to Berlin and then to Prague, Czechoslo-
vakia, where they spent World War II. They came to the United States after the war,
in 1949, as indicated above.
In 1958 my husband was invited to DeLand, Florida, to start Russian Studies
at Stetson University. He was a Professor of History there, and I, too, was asked to
teach some of the Russian language and literature courses. In about 1963 or 64 my
husband, Serge, was summoned up to New York because his father, Alexander, had
had heart failure and Vera L. was in the hospital with colon cancer. My late husband
ew up to N.Y. at once, and was faced with having to travel from one side of New
York to the other every day, since Alexander was in a hospital far removed from the
hospital Vera L. was in. In addition to that, Vera L. had bought a house in Long Island
(Flushing?) a few years before, where they had been living. Serge had to decide what
to do with both Alexander and Vera, as well as with the house. While he was in the
house one day, cleaning it out (there were piles of newspapers in the basement, where
a dog had been kept)someone came banging at the door, causing quite a ruckus in
the neighborhood. This was Veras daughter, Miriam, from England.
Vera had told us earlier that her daughter had become a pilot in the Israeli Air
Force during World War II, I had understood. Vera had also told us that she had a son
in Siberia. He had been with the German army during the War, then captured by the
Soviets at the end of the War and sent to Siberia, since he was Russian-born.
Vera had heard from him, or about him, and had even asked Alexander to go to
Europe to nd him; but Alexanders health was not up to that. Anyway, apparently,
when the son was nally released from prison in Siberia he would get drunk and be
put right back into jail. If, now, he has nally made his way to Moscow, has a wife
and children, I am very happy for him. That is all I know of him.
As to the daughter, Miriam. When she showed up on the doorstep of her
mothers house on Long Island, she proceeded to take everything she could from the
house, even some of Serges own mothers things. She cleaned out what she could,
and took off back to England. Her own mother, Vera, was very distressed at her
behavior, Vera being at deaths door with cancer. Miriam was more concerned with
getting her hands on what she could than with her mothers state of health.
As my husband had teaching obligations at Stetson University in Florida, he
had to act fast. He arranged to have his father own down to our home by one of
the regular airlines. I was in Florida, myself, all the time, since I was teaching, too.
Then Serge contacted a lawyer in New York, a certain de Bransbourg, who was
handling legal matters for Russian people there. Serge turned the house over to de
Bransbourg, who eventually disposed of it somehow. Of this, I know nothing, nor
did my husband.
My husband then returned home to DeLand, and we arranged for a private plane
to bring Vera L. down to DeLand, as well, since she had been left alone in New York.
The pilot of the plane told us she kept repeating, Florida, my Florida, on the ight.
She was glad to be coming to join us. We found a good nursing home in DeLand for
her, and went to visit her every day. Alexander was in a hospital in DeLand, having
had another heart failure attack, himself. So we had our hands full.
The doctor who was seeing Vera L. told us he had never seen such a case. Be-
ing a nurse (I forgot to mention that we understood she had served as a nurse in the
German army} Vera had tried to treat herself before she went into the hospital in New
York, and had not done herself any good thereby. So her cancer was full-blown, and
she lived only about two weeks after arriving in DeLand. I sat at the foot of her bed
when visiting her, and was there the last time shortly before she passed to the Lord.
She was a good soul, and we were happy to have done what we could for her.
This is all I can tell you. I am sorry I do not know when Vera L. Anapolsky
actually arrived in the United States, or when exactly, she and Alexander Zenkoysky
were married or in what church. All I know is that it was in New York City.
Alexander V. Zenkovsky had purchased four burial plots for himself, his rst
wife, Elena, for his son, Serge, and for me, in the early 1950s in the Russian Orthodox
Convent Cemetery of Novo Diveevo in Spring Valley, New York. When Vera passed
away, Alexander said she should be buried in one of those plots, where his rst wife,
Elena, had previously been interred. That was done, in 1963 or so, when Vera died.
Later, when Alexander died in 1965 or 1966, he, too, was laid to rest there.
My husband remarked to me once, after all the above had occurred, that the
lawyer, de Bransbourg, had somehow disposed of the house on Long Island (Flush-
ing) which Vera had purchased. We were not involved with it in any way, nor did we
want to be. Whatever papers were there were either thrown out or, perhaps, acquired
by Veras daughter Miriam. We never heard anything further from or about Miriam
until you telephoned me some two weeks agonor did we care to.
As I mentioned to you on the phone; my husband apparently rescued from the
house on Long Island one silver cigarette box, which he told me had belonged to Vera
L. I still have this box, and would be happy to pass it on to Veras grand-Daughter,
whose name, you say, is Linda in Australia (this was done). I am glad to learn that
she has a better idea of her family history than her mother, Miriamwhose name,
you write, was originally Maria. Probably, Miriam wanted to dissociate herself from
Germans for political reasons during World War II; but that doesnt excuse her for
brutish behavior on her part.
Again, may I say that the Zenkovskys were a very respected White Russian
family, devout Christians and loyal to the Tsar. Alexander obviously sympathized
with Vera Leopoldovna and the two respected each others political and religious
opinions. They were very devoted to each other to the end. I always felt terribly sorry
about Veras tragic circumstances, that she had been through so much both during
the Russian Revolution and Civil War, and then World War II, when she lost track of
both children. When her rst husband died, I do not know. I pray for her every day,
along with Serges own parents, and may all their souls rest in peace.
Memory eternal, as the Russian Orthodox people say.
I hope this helps you in your genealogical search and am sorry I can be of no
further help to you.
Yours sincerely,
Betty Jean Zenkosky (Mrs. Serge A. Zenkovsky)
December 6 ,1992
Earlier this year you asked if I had any photos of Vera Leopoldvna Schutz
Anpolsky Zenkovsky, the second wife of my late husbands father, Professor Alexan-
der V. Zenkovsky. Recently I found an old slide taken of Vera and Alexander in the
late 1950s. We had never developed the slide because it was not a good shot--that
is, the lm was faded. Since it is the only photo I have of Vera, I decided to have a
negative of the negative made, and I enclose one herewith for you, together with a
print. It shows Vera better than Alexander, and perhaps you can get some impression
of what she looked like. Actually the photo atters her a little and she looks younger
than she must have been at the time. But she was a very ne, hospital person whom
my late father-in-law regarded highly. As you probably know, Vera died of cancer
of the colon about 1963 in DeLand, Florida, where we cared for her the last weeks
of her life. I remember her in my prayers daily, together with all of my husbands
family. Last year I had the Zenkobsky graves in the Russian Orthodox Convent
Cemetery in Spring Valley, New York, covered with chipped marble to keep down
weeds. Vera is buried alongside Professor Alexander V. Zenkovsky, whose rst wife
(my late husbands mother) is likewise buried on his other side.
Best wishes to you and yours for a Happy Chirstmas and New Year.
Sincerely, Betty J. Zenkovsky
55
Tolstoy 212-677-7770, Russian Daily Newspaper, Novorossijsk (at one time,
they put an add in here for me looking for people from Novorossijsk, etc.
Jeffrey Glassman, Vice Consul, Embassy of USA referred to Leopoldovna
Zenkovsky-Anapolsky Andpolinski and said without address ~ or telephone
number or date and place of birth, theres no way to locate these people.
The Tolstoy Foundation wrote June 13, 1986 they had no trace of Sapegina
available within their documentation but they had the attached copy of an
ad in the Russian Daily Novoye Russkoye Slovo that a Vera Leopoldovna
Zenkovsky-ANAPOLSKY passed away in March 1964. As far as they know,
she arrived to USA on Sept. 27, 1949. Her husband Alexander Vasulievich
ZENKOVSKY died 6-7-1966.
Peter Kasakowitz died at 76, 12-23-2001. Myriam died at 76, 7-14-2002. Both
were cremated at North East Surrey Crematoriam in England.
I wish we could locate offsprings of other family Schutzs.
Linda corresponded with Ron in the summer and fall of 2002. She and her
children are here shown. Linda trained as a nurse at 35 years old.
Mr. Arthur E. Flegel, 1895 Oak-
dell Dr., Menlo Park, CA 94025;
415-322-8694
LEO SCHUTZS VERA
Veras granddaughter Linda.
Linda and daughter, Kali, are
shown in Bangladesh native cos-
tumes. Kali was an international
volunteer there for one year.
Linda visited her in a 2001.
When our Schutz family came through Ellis Island in 1904, Carl said, My
name is Carl Schitz. At any rate, thats what it sounded like. Due to dialect and
interence from English, this sound is sometimes altered to a sound best represented by
the Schietz spelling. Imigration ofcials didnt like the sound of this. His name
there-on was Schootz. This story was passed down to us by Amalis children and
repeated by Bernard Schootz of Riverside, California (in 1990) and perhaps Ema in
a telephone conversation in around 1990 wherein she also informed Lydia and Ron
that her three uncles were shot during the Revolution.
Accordinglyto his Declaration of Intention, Carl was 5 8, 165 pounds, brown
eyes, 25 years old on June 21, 1910. He too came here from Antwerp on the Vater-
land from Noworossisk
8-15-1903.
From a local paper
dated April 1911: The
infant daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Carl Schoots died
last Thursday and was
buried on Saturday in the
Dash Cemetery.
Bernard told us that
Carl and son Leo, were
both unusually strong
and could lift the front
end of a car to change its
tire. Carl expected his
son to have this strength
very demandingly. They
both died on the streets
or in the missions of Los
Angeles and were victims
of alcohol addiction and
consumption.
Dear Ron,
Received your two pack-
ets of literature, and pho-
tos, of which I nd often
trying to digest in my
mind and in my heart, amazed
at your tenacity in tracing
your ancestors. My phone
conversation with you and
your mother, the info and the
photos, I found very stirring,
in that I too have wondered
about my folks in the Schootz
side of my family. As I men-
tioned in our phone conversa-
tion, if I am able to nd my
father alive, I am reasonably
sure that he has photos of
his parents and perhaps of
their parents. Enclosed is a
photo of my father Leo, his
sister Emma on his right, with
her daughter Helen standing
in front of her, and myself
standing in front of my father.
Photo was take in June of
1936. Emma was born 1909,
Leo in 1912, Helen 1932 and
I 1934. Thank you for the in-
formation and photos and my
best to you and yours.
Cousin, Bernard (Schootz)
Found in an area newspaper
from mid-January 1910 was this news note with title:
DOINGS PAST AND PRESENT IN BRYAN TOWNSHIP
Carl Schootz and his phonograph are in demand these evenings. Carl is handy with
the accordion at the dances and his services are always rendered in a very pleasant
manner. Contributed by Barbara Horner.
Emma told Ron that her
Dads brothers were shot during
the revolution; one was a baker,
another a cook, another a railroad
conductor.
In the 1910 N.D. census, it
was recorded that out of 14 children
in your mothers family or rather
out of 13 of her brothers, only 7
were alive. By the time the 4 broth-
ers including Miriams Leo were
shot, this of course left 3. Emmas
dad, Carl was one of these 3.
Emmas brothers son: Ber-
nard Schootz from near Riverside,
CA, told also of how Carl went with
the railroad to Indiana where he
was a machinist and gave accordian
lessons. There is where our great
grandmother Rosalie is buried.
The family was then transferred
to the L.A. area. Carl repaired
clocks built in Germany such as
Black Forrest Clocks. Uncle Carl
lastly lived in the L.A. slums - an
incredibly strong man who could
lift a Model T and expected his son
to do the same.
Bernards dad also died in the slums with
the same alcohol self abuse. Until Ron dug
into this, Bernard did not know his dads fate.
Ron found out thru the Social Security Dept.
57
ALOISS CARL SCHUTZ/SCHOOTZ
Fred Heldt wrote:
Lydias mother may have been Polish on both sides of her family.
I remember her brother Carl very well for the reason that at that time the
phonograph had not yet been invented and Carl played the Accordian and
it facinated me no end. It was the only music I had heard aside from the
harmonica.
Willis Frisky, 97, Rolla, seems to be the only one who had much con-
tact with my mothers uncle Carl Schootz. He recalls tending his horses
while Carl was sick one day. But it was hoped we could scare up some
other names who not only might have had some contact such as this with
him, but who also knew where he moved to after having lived in Southern
Canada, not far from Sarles, for a short period in/around 1913.
Carl and family lived in Indiana and later Los Angeles. Carls was the last known
of the 14 to still be alive between 1923 and 1949. No other events regarding our
Schutz were known of until Miriams letters in the 1980s.
59
About these
pictures. (Ad-
olf and John
Schutz fam-
ily)
These pictures
were in Lydia
or Pollys col-
lection. Dates
are not easy
t o assert ai n
exactly. They
appear to be
between 1893
& 1909. Like-
l y 1905-07.
Adol ph and
family (Denis,
Mihra, Antoni,
& Eugeni) and
Aloiss broth-
er John with
family.
Miriam said that the Schutz standing on the right with baby is a spitting image of her mother
(at similar ages).
Gnadau is
nor t h of
Kr a s n o -
60
The Eckerdts leave Russia 1892-1900:
The rst of Conrad Eckerdts children
to leave was Peter. Peter was brother of John,
Jacob and Conrad. Peter was born September
22, 1867. Johns children told that the authori-
ties were going to hang Peter. He was running
with a wild bunch, Cossacks or others, stealing
horses or he was found with a stolen horse.
Harold Wilcox said, he was caught stealing
horses by authorities, running with a gang of
horse thieves. So his brothers had to get him
out of the country.
Albert said that his uncle Peter in Russia
was in some kind of trouble and could have
been hung if the government ofcials would
have caught up with him.
He came through Ellis Isle and went to Sutton, Nebraska where he worked in
a brick yard owned by a Klaus or Claus.
The sooty, bumpy trip from Ellis Island in New York to Adams County, Nebraska,
took many days. Many of the German-Russian immigrants who arrived in Adams
County traveled in immigrant trains such as the on pictured below. William believed
Claus were related. Claus lived at the brick yard. Peter drove a team of horses with
1,000 brick to Juanita - six miles west of Hastings. This roundtrip consumed a day
each time. I believe Klaus was related to Elizabeth. Peter was married to Elizabeth
Kahler. Born August 25, 1866 Huck (one obit says 1864 Hook) married in 1891
at 21 likely in Neuheum. She died at 75 in 1940 married 51 years, 3 children. Pall
bearers John E., Lyle Cullip, Bob E., Fred and Erwin Naggatz.
1910 Nebraska census: Peter 42, married 19 years, imm. 92, watchman ower
mill. Wife Lizzie 44, 5 children - 3 survive: John 17 Apprentice Wholesale Hardware,
Adam 14, William 11.
Peters Deed of Intent led 5-1918 Adams County. He was 50, 57, 145 pounds,
from Kulp or Culp (spelled both ways on 2 documents) Russia. Last residence, 711
South St. Joseph,
Hastings (1900).
Was 23 when mar-
ried in 1891. Later
lived 400 South
Minnesota. Port
of Embark was
Amsterdam, ar-
rived New York,
December 23,
1891.
P e t e E .
wor ked i n t he
Hastings Milling
Co. for 10 years.
Wi l l i a m wa s
around 11 then.
Pet er t hen
wor ked i n t he
Burlington Shop
until retirement.
His Pall bearers
were John E. Lyle
Cullip, Bob E., Fred and Erwin Naggatz. Born 8-22-67. 1900 was reported 4 chil-
dren - 3 alive.
Ref.: of Vital Statistics, State Dept Health, P.O. Box 95007, Lincoln, NE
68509.
Elizabeths brother Conrad and wife (a Bittner) came in 1911 from Huck. Their
dad died when Conrad was seven years old and his mother died at his birth. Conrad
had a daughter: Elizabeth (Mrs. Fred Menard) 402-463-7885.
All indications point to Kahlers originating in Huck. Ron visited with her in the
1980s or early 1990s and regrets not asking more questions. Other Kahlers were in
Lincoln and Ron wishes to learn how they are connected to Conrad and Elizabeth.
The Peter Eckerdts moved to in Hastings.
One of Peter sons: William, was a building contractor in Hastings. One of his
sons was Bill who was a polio handicap and ran a shoe-repair business in Lincoln
until his death. Ron corresponded with William and his daughter Dorothy in the
1980s. He said Jacob had the same nose as brother Peter. William was 11 years
old when brother John visited Peter. William said, Jacob got the land and my Dad
(Peter) got a team of horses.
The only son of Peters who populated the U.S. with numerous Eckerdts was
John. He bore males by several wives. They were in the 1990s in Colorado, Utah,
California and other western states. Ron visited (via telephone) with Johns last wife
Lola in the early 1990s. If these were not Johns decendants, they then belong to
George and Margaret Eckerdt from Huck. John died in 1939. By Johns rst wife
was born Leweze who last was in Lincoln. By second wife was Fred, John Jr., Jane
Davis and Carl. By his third wife, Bertha Harrington Eckerdt who later married a
West and had Gary West.
Dotties #2 son and 3
children live in Stratton near
McCook. The Kahlers (Pre-
sume Elizabeths parents
etc.) had 5 children on arrival
to the U.S. the stayed with
Pete for 2 months. William
said he though they were
from the same village.
Dotties dress shop wa-
sOld Town Ltd., 46th Prescott
Ave., Hastings, Nebraska.
61
62
The Eckerdt name has been continued by the propagations of (here in the U.S.)
Peter, Jacob and George and Margaret. George was a cousin. The largest
branches are Peter and Georges. Johns died via girls and Jacobs stayed
small via girls. (female offsprings).
We seek additions and corrections to both Conrads and Georges.
PHONECOINC@AOL.COM
608-582-2263 Collect.
63
Petes Eckerdts:
From Chart #3: 2nd Cousins of Ron, Eileen,
Jeanne, Sis, the McMahons and Barb Horner (2003) w/(#) on
chart.

Dottie (17)
Jane & Davis (21/22)
Lola (23)
64
Reasons
t o Le a v e
Russia:
Peter Gey-
ers mother did
not like the edu-
cation system in
Russia. The Rus-
sians educated
only if you had
the money to pay
to a school. Pe-
ter was orphaned
young. While at
the university,
he indulged in
student protests.
Russianization
was forced on
t hem and t he
Germans were
h a r d - h e a d e d
about it. 14%
of the U.S. im-
migrants were
from Russia and
Finland during
these years.
The year
1871 brought important changes to the colo-
nies in South Russia. The Russian authorities
now usurped jurisdictional control of privi-
leges which the colonists had enjoyed, such as
freedom from military service and self-control
over their schools and churches.
When Czar Alexander II issued a ukase
in 1871 which abolished the special rights
and privileges enjoyed by the German colo-
nists in Russia, he triggered the emigration
of thousands of German-Russians over the
next four decades. The new policies of Rus-
sication in the colonies and forced military
conscription for young German-Russian males
brought distrust toward the government; to
be sure. However, the explosive growth in
population among the German-Russians,
once theyd established themselves, brought a
pressure for land that became more and more
difcult to relieve as they acquired the dwindling supply of available land for the
establishment of daughter colonies. It became increasingly difcult for the younger
generations to obtain farmland, and less attractive to stay in Russia than it had been
for their forefathers.
To come to the United States was, for many years, the dream of every German
there and any of them who could scrape up the money would leave.
One of the things often thought was that this was a plentiful land where people
would get rich easily.
One German related an interesting story about the children of his village (late
1890s). They would chant in German, Were going to America, the land where
milk and honey ow. Where the cows come home with sweet bread (Johannisbrot)
upon their horns. After some of the children lived in Endicott Washington they
would rob the overowing wild bee honey from the hollow trees along the Palouse
River. The pastures were so rich in the Palouse, that each evening when the cows
came home their udders were so full of milk that, as the cows ran, the milk spurted
out. So said the parents, Look - see, you have milk owing from the cows and the
honey owing from the trees, just as we said it would be like here when we were
in Russia.
Oft-repeated story was as follows: An immigrant couple was riding on the train
from Colfax to Endicott, Washington. They had heard in Russia that America was so
rich that the fences were made of sausage. This was in the year 1903. It had been
a year when the Palouse country Washington had been infested with untold number
of ground squirrels. It had become the practice for everyone to shoot as many as
possible and to hang the squirrels on the fence wire. Soon, between Diamond and
Endicott, most of the spaces on all three fence wires were covered with hanging
squirrels. Seeing these squirrels from the train, the Volga immigrant said to his wife,
Look mother, see. Its just like they said in Russia. Not only are the fences made
for sausages, but they have plump sausages (Bratwurst) hanging all along the wire.
Such was the practical humor of this hard working, serious people.
In 1890, Russian nationalism was again on the rise, and a new law was passed
which required that all persons who had not yet taken out their Russian citizenship
were forbidden to acquire any landed property. It also prevented them from plow-
ing and seeding Russian soil. This effectively prevented them from even renting
farmland.
In 1891, the freedom to hold elections within the community was withdrawn
in South Russia. Russian became the ofcial language in the schools.
Disillusioned, many more German colonists left their Russian steppes. Thou-
sands immigrated to the United States and Canada. Thousands more, inuenced
by Romanjan Minister Peter Carps, settled in Dobrujan vilalges already settled by
Germans.
Second Eckerdt to Leave:
First Peter 1892-2 and now John 1892-3 second to leave.
The next Eckerdt to leave Russia for the U.S. was John. The dates dont
appear to match up well. Following, are from pass-me-downs, obituary and other
records.
One indicator of Johns departure are his passport and and what
old-timers have said: that he came to the U.S. in 1893. His passport
lists June of 1893. He was out of the military for less than one year and
was then called back into active duty. He didnt want this so he told
the Russians that he was going to the Chicago 1893 Worlds Fair. John
G. Kaiser, one German, born in 1880, left Russia, too, on a six month
permit. He was age 19 and at age twenty he was to be drafted into the
army. By the time the six months period had expired, he was in the
United States, safe from the Russian military draft.[as from Heritage
Review 32:1,2002] So perhaps the 1893 expiration date seen on Johns
passport is an expiration date. Jacob Eckerdt, Johns brother, was born
in 1854; John was born in 1864. His wife Amali was born in 1868. In
the early 1870s, the Russians took away the promises that Katherine
the Great had made in regard to no taxation, and no draft. They started
drafting the men, and John Eckerdt entered the army at 21, years of age
in 1885. In 1888, he married Amelia Schutz who was then 23.
In 1890, at the age of 27, John Eckerdt was released from active
duty and started a wagon business in Neuheim. In 1892, at age 28, he
was drafted again. It was told that they selected the draftees from a barrel
with names in it. However since John was in the reserves and length of
active duty were up to 12 years, he was slated to return to active duty.
One of the Geyer children was born in Dec. 1893 in Wahala, ND.
Lydia told about newlyweds John and Amelia. Obituaries and
census reports say they married in 1888, not 1893. Maybe they were
66
The dates here all have to do with the probable innaccura-
cies recorded, of Johns entrance into the army. 1887 would
be more like it. His passport calls him an Under Ofcer
(noncommissioned, probably).
Furthermore, his naturalization papers say ---entered the port
of Niche in June of 1893. Since they are of 1897, it would
be too fresh in memory to be innaccurate.
Shown here are of
his passport.
Johns obituary says he entered the army in 1885 and served 5 years as a gunsmith.
I believe Uncle Al said that when he got out of the Army, he began or was going
to start a wagon business. In less than a year he was drafted again. This prompted
him to leave Russia.
It has been said that he came here in 1893. Here must have been Canada. His
passport does show a date of 1893. But this may have been a passport termination
date. (Since they told the Russians that they were going to the Worlds Fair in
Chicago, they may have been expected back in July 93). Lydia said it got colder
as they traveled west and very cold in Winnepeg. His obituary also says, Living
rst in Winnepeg. It has been siad they wintered in Winnipeg. I believe I read
on some of Johns other papers that he came to the U.S. in 1893. This, however
conicts, since they would have entered ND in 1894. I suspect that John and Peter
reported 1893 within a context of entering America, not dividing the countries
(Canada and U.S.) with any discrimination even though a border was there. The
thing that blows this theory is that Robert J. Geyer was born to Peter and Johanna
at Pennbina, ND, on 12-20-1893. If this 12-1893 birthdate is correct, they would
have truly walked to ND in June of 1893 as previously thought, and would have
left Russia in 1892.
acting like newlyweds since John had just been
released from active duty?
From 1910 census records and obituary: John
grew to manhood in Ecketerinodar. This likely
meant that hed have been perhaps 15 when his family
arrived in the Kuban in 1881 and entered the army in
late 1886 or early 1887 at 21. At 21, in 1890, Amalia
married John who was still in active duty lending evi-
dence that John was stationed in or near Novorosyk,
at some, time during, at or prior to 1890. Johns son
led Ron to believe that John saw atrocities during his
active duty which left their marks. John thus avoided
conversations about his military activity.
It would seem then that he would have been
close to a battle front in his earlier years and by
1890 after three years, was then stationed in or near
Novorosjk. Do you have any other ideas of how
these two met and where? Records of this adventure
are likely nowhere. Ron in 2003 grieves with regret
at not having investigated Johns attic in 1949. The
house was burnt in the 1950s or 60s destroying a marriage certicate if such evidence
existed. As with other Russian Germans, few records were kept and John had good
reason to be typically secretive (feared being sent back to Russia and shot (disci-
plined)). Only by learning of others patterns, a few records such as N.D. census, a
few hand-me-down comments and imagination can we construct their movements
with marginal accuracy.
Following their marriage in 1888 or 1890 at 24 or 26 and 20 or 22 years old,
John endured two or more years of active duty. Were they together during this time?
Lydia spoke of them as newlyweds at their 1892 Neuheim departure - so they may
have been apart for some duration.
John Eckerdts passpart states that he was a reserve non-commissioned ofcer
who was going to reserve work in Germany. John Eckerdt had been a gunsmith in
the Russian army.
Johns obituary says: He entered the army in 1885 for ve years. They were
married in 1888 and three years later came to America - 1891. Doesnt seem to
t, does it? However, Amalis 1915 obituary reports they married in 1891. The
emigrated to Winnipeg the following year (late Fall 92) (makes more sense and is
fresher in memory) From there they went to Walhalla, ND where they resided for
four years (till 1897). This gures!
Rons notes: It appears based on Alberts report that John was released for les
than a year (whereupon he began a wagon manufacturing business) and then called
back into active duty. If they left in 1892, and had been away from active duty for
about one year (released in 1891 (late fall or mid winter), he wouldve entered the
army in 1886 at 21 or 22 years old.
That they came to the U.S. (not to Canada or America) in 1893 is repeated
enough by Johns citizenship paper, Pete Geyers momentos, Amalis obituary,
passed-down information to quite accurately conrm this is the true date of cross-
ing into Neche following their walk from Winnepeg. ron had this rather rmly
implatned in his mind such that during the prairie-owering time on his property
in Caledonia Twp, WI in June 1993, believed this to be the 100th anniversary of
Eckerds and Geyers entrance into the U.S.
Amali died in 1915, 22 years after their arrival here. Twenty-two years should
provide a short enough memory time to establish much accuracy in the obituary
which may likely have been provided by John.
Furthermore, other dates mentioned in Amalis obit jive with dates from other
sources.
Ron has tried to analyze this numerous times leading to variation and confu-
sion in dates.
Others Leaving With John:
The Eckerdt family along with four or ve other German families, those who
left Neuheim with John, chose to come to America, reportedly telling the Russians
that they were going to go to the Worlds Fair in 1893. The Pete Geyer family was
one of the families. Pete was the mayor of the community.
There was a man by the name of Redinger and his wife, and a Koshnek that
came. I havent been able to nd other names. Ive been told that they came at rst
without a passport because they were more or less defectors, and would have come
in through Canada because they wouldnt have been allowed through Ellis Island
without a passport. I was unable to nd any names on ships lists in 1892 or 1893.
Mrs. Redinger was Phillip Heldts sister. 1893 also was the year Phillip
married Jacob Eckerdt daughter Elizabeth. Ron found no evidence that
the Redingers had children. They settled North and West a mile or two from Pete
Geyer.
Much information was gleaned from Mabel Hadlers book Towner County
Families which was out of print until around 1999. Ron had confused these Kos-
chnicks with Krischnuks of Rock Lake and done a fair measure of research thus
in vain. Once he purchased one of these complete large books, he discovered the
Koschnick name which is closer to the way Albert pronounced it. With the northern
accent, it sounded like Kooshnek. Ron called these people, but was unable to verify
that these were the real people in the departing party.
If they ran out of money by the time they reached the depot to board the ship
to the U.S., they got sent back. Many cried at this thought or deed. One such was
Rediger and his wife (from the same village) -John Helds sister and brother-in-law
who had no children. They borrowed money from Peter and came with him. Lydia
Geyer at 100 years old, recorded on a cassette tape the following:
Another familys name was Rham, who when they got to the ship to come
across to the United States begged Pete Geyer for money. The Rhams didnt want
to go back, perhaps they were avoiding authorities. Its not very clear.
The Rham family was in the depot with their three daughters, Mary, Kate,
and Marian, all crying loudly and Mr. Rham pleaded with Peter to borrow money
to make the trip. They were afraid to return- something about scheming -afraid that
Mr. Rham would be arrested. They needed ship-fare to make the journey here. Mr.
Rham was to pay Peter Geir back upon residing in the U.S. Bessie said this did
not happen. There were Rhams in Rocklake in the mid-early 1990s. It appears to
be a different family than who came with John Eckerdt in 1893, no one interviewed
recognized or acknowledged this.
Ron thought that the Rham that came with John in 1892 was a Frank Rham.
But confusion exists that the Rham family that still lives in and around Rock Lake
is not likely this same Rham. He may have been of a different name. However,
Eugenes mother remembered this stroy also. Very possibly, this was a very differ-
ent and unattached family of Rhams. Eugene Norheim believes that his Aunt Lydia
was not credible on this description. He may not have been a Rham. Frank Rham
apparently was a good friend of Johns and was a pallbearer at his funeral. More on
this in the Sarles section.
Also, it had been told that a young lady came over with the group whos ID
we know not of and who remained in the East.
The Geyers were likely from Huck. The Huck Geyer was Geier and some
married Eckerdts. Bessie wrote and told how her Grampa Geyer was educated
at the U. of Moscow, lived on a boat on theMediterranean while spying for
ZKaiser Wilhelm and were at Neuheim before coming over here. Pete had been the
village representative.Pete had attended the University of Moscow for two years,
and had also done spying for Kaiser Wilhelm. Petes son Victor walked with John
Eckerdt from Winnepeg to Niche where they found employment on a farm. Both
families worked on this farm, said to be owned by a Jew. Strangely (according to
Bessie) Pete disliked Jews; one of Johns best friends had a typical Jewish name.
on tape that they had taken to the water quite likely at Odessa (south Russia)
and gone through the Mediterranean Sea, to get to Germany and get on a ship to
come to the United States. She says that it grew colder, leading one to think that it
would have been towards the late fall of 1892. And it was very cold when they got
into Winnipeg, it was winter and they didnt have much for clothing.
They had only brought luggage, since they had told the Russians that they were
going to the Worlds Fair, not that they were moving.
Lydia believes that they came through Canada and not Ellis to Winnipeg where
they got stuck for probably the spring part of the winter -mid-winter on in Winnipeg
67
Petes children are as seen on the accompanying charts. One
son, Eugene married Jacob Eckerdt;s daughter Elizabeth.
He ran a hardware store in Hansboro. His daughter Bessie
Norheim, Rons second cousin, shared numerous details
reguarding the Geyers and Eckerdts. Her son Eugene lives
on the home farm in 2000 and also offered some historical
information to document.
Pete was a dissident; faction against the Czar somehow.
Petes home eventually became a conventional wood
frame and was still standing with one outbuilding in 1992
or 1993. The attic of the outbuilding contained magazines
with Carolyn Martins address on them.
Lydia Knappen remembers great fear in her front yard
of seeing the ganders across the road. The road was and still
is in 2000 a mere dirt trail through the prairie.
According to an atlas found by Bessie Norheim, Peter
Geyer wrote that they had homesteaded in Towner County in
1897, had stayed in Winnipeg and worked to recoupe funds
expended during and prior to their trip here.
In the Rock Lake Ripples newspaper of 11-1920 was
a news note telling that Pete Geyer moved his family from
their home near Sarles into the former Gene Rimel home.
They became very poor upon arrival. And accord-
ing to Lydia Geyer they spent time in Winnipeg working,
then came to the are North of Wallhalla and spent 2 or 3
years there.
An atlas listed Peter as a farmer and breeder of milking shorthorn cattle, 5-22, T. Smith 1897, born in Volga Distric 1853, came to US
in 1893, living in Cavalier County, md. Geohannetta Frick, 2 sons, six daughters lving.
68
GEYERS
Pete Geyer didnt like the soil at Wallhalla, thats why they came to
the Rocklake area.
69
(Left) Bessies husband Rudolph
Norheim.
Eugene L. Norheim,
6869 97th St. NE
Rock Lake, ND 58365-9623
70
GEYERS
Eugene
ENorheim@UTMA.
com
Jill Workman
Mrs. Kurt
12412 N. 78th Dr
Peoria, AZ 85381
It appears as if John and Pete searched for available homesteading land and
located some as by 1897 they had acquired some near Rocklake on the north tip of
Rock Lake. They built their homes across the road from each other - rst crude mud
huts and then a bit more rened (see picture on cover).
Petes brother kept $40,000 in a straw tick. When he came over here he decided
there was nothing here for him and left taking all his money with him. It was taken
from him when he got into Russia. At the end of the First World War he wrote for a
ticket to come here. My Dad (Eugene) and Vic Geyer discussed the situation with
their father. Pete Geyer, as to what to do. Pete sat tamping tobbacco into his pipe
then nally replied, Let them stay there. He gave us nothing and we were very
hard up. He wouldnt help us in any way.What would we do with them to bring
them back here now? Will they work?
John Geir of Huck had the following children: Phillip, John, Peter, Barbara,
Katherine, Anna M & Eliz. whether this Peter is the one who was a close associate
of John Eckerdt or not is not in 2003 known.
Rudolph Norheim md. 1931 Bessie M. Geyer. Bessie b. 5-5-1912 taught in
Hansboro & Rocklake & other schools. Son, Eugene Louis b. 1-30-1932 md. 6-
17-56 to Kathleen Scobba.
Children=Sandra Lee 3-16-57; Chicago
Curtis Randall 5-23-58; Fargo
Rudolph died in 1965. Bessie died 7-24-2000, buried Rock Lake.
Pete Geyers father was John. His fathers wife died and he then married a
Frick who had a daughter that Pete married. Mrs. Frick also must have had a son
to whom Bessie calls a half brother whom I believe she also said came here with
John Eckerdt, Ron thinks his name was Chris.
Pete Geyers uncles were well to do and sent Pete to the University of Moscow.
So, he became college-educated. And then he spied for Kyser Willhelm living in
a house boat on the Mediteranian. He returned home to the Neuheim area and then
came over here with Christ (?) Frick (his half-brother).
Petes children are as seen on the accompanying charts . One son, Eugene mar-
ried Jacob Eckerdts daughter Elizabeth. He ran a hardware store in Hansboro. His
daughter Bessie Norhiem Rons second cousin, shared numerous details reguarding
the Geyers & Eckerdts. Her son Eugene lives on the home farm in 2000 and also
offered some interesting information to document.
Many of Grampas types were protectively secret resulting in difcult geneol-
ogy. I was hoping to glean more via Grieners, Epstiens, Buckholzs Geyers, Reding-
ers, Heldts, Fricks, Friske, Koshneks and others but the pursuits were
unsuccessful, except for Geyers. Koshneks came over with Grampa
and were friends in N.D. but Ive not found much about them. Mom
remembered overnighters in their place in the Turtle Mts. hearing wolves
or coyotes howl. Most Bessarabian G.R.s settled in Western N.D. and
Voglas in Lincoln Nebraska area but ours was different.
Leaving Neuheim:
Lydia Geyer Sampson, whos family (Pete) (it was told) left with
John and Amelia, said that it got colder by the time they reached Odessa
and her mother put a cape on her shoulders. She also said that when
they got to Winnepeg they were also cold, had no shoes and had to
wait until the elders made enough money to get shoes for the children.
Maybe since it was so warm in Neuheim, June mornings in Odessa at
40-45 degrees felt cold. Or perhaps John went to Odessa in June to
get his passport but the group (Geyers, Redingers, Kuschnik, Rhams
and Eckerdts) didnt actually leave until late Fall. Several have said
that they wintered in Winnepeg.
Jeanne (Amelia Eckerdt Flemmings daughter) Knappen was at
least one who stated they were defectors, hiding in barns and sneaking
out of Russia. Yet John had a passports Lydia Geyer spoke not of this.
Nicol says: I remember you and Uncle Albert well from a summer visit. I
was 14 . . . you were 16 I think? I recall that you told me that Grandma and Grampa
Eckerdt escaped from Russia with a trunk of clothes and that they sewed jewels in
the lining of her dress ( I think you said) and that they sold the jewels for passage to
North America. I repeated the story to Ron, but hed never heard it.
Lydia Geyer Sampson, believes that there was a train ride as far as Odessa.
Following this was a boat ride to Istanbul and from there through the Mediterra-
nean as she seems to recall having her Dad point various things out to her along the
Mediterranean Sea such as Turkey.
John Kaiser told about the train trip from Russia to the German border in 1899.
The passengers, he said, traveled like livestock on the oor of the big box cars.
The trip lasted ten days. We ate when and where we could, from what we could
hurriedly buy at train stops.[as from Heritage Review 32:1,2002]
Lydia Geyer Sampson, daughter of Pete Geyer, at the age of 100 recorded
71
where they (Eugene, Victor, and Peter) worked to replenish their money-supply since
they exhausted it thus far.
Lydia wore Peters socks for warmth and did not leave the house because of
having no shoes until Eugene bought a pair with money he earned working for a
merchant or whatever.
John Eckerdt worked in the Royal Alexandra Hotel in Winnipeg as a stable
man, and Amali worked as a maid. In the spring, probably 1893, he and one of Pete
Geyers sons (Victor) walked from Winnipeg to North Dakota, crossing at Niche,
where the families worked for three years or so. In the meantime, they would take
trips west (about 80 or 100 miles). Males born to Amalia died at birth or shortly
after. One story passed down to Ron was that
Eliz. Kahler wanted to marry John. John ignored
her and instead married Amali. This infuri-
ated Elizabeth and she put a curse on John and
Amali that they would not have males. While
in Wahalla or Neche daughter Amelia was born
in May, 1896.
A German-Russian immigrant was given
a banana determined it was no mere American
ritual. It was an American food-perhaps not un-
like one of Russias ne apples-so he ate the peel
and threw the inside of the yellow thing away!
These and other stories were told by the
Germans from Russia and their descendants as
a way of coping with the not-so funny hardships
and frustrating language difculties encountered during the early years of immigra-
tion. We laugh at these stories not out of disrespect. The old immigrants themselves
told these stories and admitted that without a sense of humor and the ability to laugh at
71
ones self, they never could have persevered.
Lydia Geyer Sampson believed it was near Wahahala that they lived
for some time and the Rahms came there also. There was a hill behind
their house where she went sliding.
It was said by a cousin in North Dakota or Duluth, Minnesota, that
the farmer, they worked for was a Jewish farmer, and that Jews were not
necessarily good farmers. In Russia, its said they were everywhere and
anywhere there were money transactions to be made, either buying or sell-
ing. They handled money matters quite well, and that Germans were not
at all adept to that, and leaned on the Jews for help with money matters.
Most settlers came to North Dakota for free or inexpensive land and
the chance to farm. Between 1879 and 1886 over 100,000 immigrants
entered northern Dakota territory. The second massive movement into
the state was between 1898 and 1915 when more than 250,000 persons
came into the state. While some of the earliest settlers came by ox-drawn
wagons, stagecoaches, or steamboats, the vast majority came on the rail-
road. Both the Northern Pacic and Great Northern railroads advertised
Dakota in Europe, promoting people to take the railroad to North Dakota
and farm the rich land there.
Most new settlers grew wheat, but did not have large farms. They
either bought their land from the railroad or they homesteaded federal
land. Homesteading involved living on and improving 160 acres of land
for a number of years, after which the settlers got the land for free. They
could receive an additional 160 acres of land by planting and maintaining
trees on the prairie.
While surveyors were hard at work in the late 1800s laying out the townships
in the Dakota Territory, the federal government was already making deals with the
various railroad companies to make sure that this method of transportation would be
available in the future for just about every area. This was important in order to assure
proper development of the land for economic growth. The railroad was the means
by which goods could be moved over land routes economically and rapidly.
In 1897 John acquired a one-quarter section homestead, 1 quarter of land, 10
miles West and 2 miles South of Sarles. The Plat book lists him this way: Eckert,
Johann Farmer, P.O. Sarles 1897. He built a sod house similar to what they had
done as pioneers in Russia. By then he was about 33 years old.
John farmed over 800 acres for a number years. He
also invented items such as a better way to make butter
with a churn. He sold this churn apparatus in neighboring
communities and to farmers.
The events immediately following the establish-
ment of Johns homestead 1897 are unrecorded. Prairie
pioneers experienced the same events - common gains
and losses.
According to Eugene Norheim and Edmund Heldt,
the postal station (where Sam Stout picked up mail to
deliver in the area) 5 or 6 miles south of the Eckerdt &
Geyer homesteads and the school on Johns property was
named the Antwerp P.O. and Antwerp School after the
European port (the port they sailed out of.)
72
Towner, population 948
Towner began as a settlement in 1884. It became the county seat
of McHenry county. The name was given to the city by local residents
and railroad ofcials for Oscar M. Towner, a colonel, Civil War veteran,
promoter and land speculator. He was a member of the Territorial Leg-
islature in 1883 and a bonanza farmer. Towner lies in a valley of the
Mouse (Souris) river. The country around is most suitable for cattle-
raising. The rst settlers here were also Scandinavians. They settled
in the town for the most part; the Catholic German Russians settled
mostly in the country. They also came here from the older settlements
of southern North Dakota, Selz at Karlsruhe in the nineties. The Ger-
man Russian church is Catholic St. Caecilia church.
73
73A
74
Schools most often were built on private lands. Settlers often gave
away land for the building of post ofces and churches out in the country
(there were very few towns at that time), and they also set aside land for
the placement of cemeteries.
The county government was granted a building of roads. Later
telephone lines and power lines were added along side these country
roads. In the very early days of a county, however, it was not uncommon
for telephone lines to run diagonally across a section of land.
John built a house most certainly of this type. Ron
was told that to initiate a homestead, a dwelling
had to be erected on each quarter (160 acres).
Thus at every mile interval was a shack or dwell-
ing of some type. Most would assemble a shed
like seen built by hermits and vagabonds in town
dumps during the 1920s and 1930s.
The Joseph Burkholder family pose for the last time, in front of their sod and tarpaper shack,
located in Towner County, ve miles east of the village of Rock Lake, North Dakota. The
family was moving on this day in 1901 to a larger square two-story house, one half mile
away. Their stoic faces are deceiving, as moving to a larger house meant that they had
passed yet another milestone in their long and lonely homesteading venture.
Here, they fought the hopelessness of re-creating
the life that was good in the old country. Was the devas-
tation of war, threat of military conscription or religious
persecution really worse than the isolation, epidemics
and lack of spiritual guidance in this new land? They
probably asked these questions many times during the
rst years worrying about prairie res, tornadoes, raging
blizzards, acts of God that could take their crops, homes
or/and families.
Survival was their rst priority here; formal educa-
tion had to wait while children learned from parents.
Most of our grandparents who immigrated to the
N.D. plains are buried in small, simple and unadorned
cemetaries. These were the rst to break the rich prairie
sod; others were youngsters who were born here but
never grew beyond their childhood days. Usually one
might nd a variety of markers: the traditional German-
Russian iron cross, simple stone markers, unmarked and
many forgotten. Simple brief names, births, deaths on
the markers reect the simple, unpretentious lives who
farmed, took pride in their families, accomplishments
and faith. Theres no marker to tell the story of how
they left their homeland to travel to a lonely homestead,
how they plowed the soil, endured the summer heat and
freezing winter cold nor any bronze plaque that can tell
of their joys or hardships.
75
His acreage joined John Eckerdts and borders the Rock Lake in the southwest
of section 27. There is a possibility that this acreage was away from his house
(his house may not have been on this aceage but on other he owned).
Dakota German-Russian houses were constructed of clay mixed with manure, straw,
and water. Ideally suited to the prairie where building materials were scarce, German-
Russian houses used the earthen mixture in several construction techniques. Puddled clay,
rammed earth, and hand-made bricks known as batsa formed load-bearing walls as well as
interior partitions, loft oors, and massive center chimneys.
Rectangular, one-story houses have a central or off-center entry leading to a kitchen
anked by a parlor and a storage or sleeping chamber. Some houses had a central, six-foot-
square room known as a schwarz Kuche (black kitchen) for preparing and cooking food.
Most early German-Russian vernacular houses were eventually covered with clapboard
siding. Later dwellings combined clay within a wood frame, but retained the traditional
form.
Johns original homestead is shown here northwest quarter of section27. Note the other house on the opposite end
- probably where Schutz lived.
75A
75B
75C
Standing in ditch July 9, 2005 next to road. Northwest
corner near entrance to 1st claim 1897 northwest
quarter section 27. Trees closest may have been small
in 1897? Trees in background with downed tree trunk
may have been east of the house.
75D
75E
76
Philip Heldt told of how distances were a great problem in the early
days. To get wood for building and for rewood he had to travel to St.
John to his fathers place (this from an article in paper), which was a days
journey by horse team. It would then be necessary to spend a day cutting
the wood and took another day to return. During these trips in winter he
would often get cuaght in a blizzard, and he mentioned one such trip in
which the sleigh tipped over so many times that only half a cord of wood
was left when he nally reached home. Other long trips had to be made
for grain and for feed. Likely, all farmers located eight miles or more
from the nearest small town experienced these challenges.
The following chart shows a
typical breakdown of a section
of land, which is 640 acres.
Immigrants could le for 160
acres of freeland. Once they
led claim for the land that they
had selected, they had to live
on the land and had to improve
upon it. To assist in the identi-
cation of the land, the settlers
had to record the information
from previously established
surveying markers, which were
were located at the corners of
every quarter section.
Another homesteading faimly in front of their sod house also near Rock
Lake, 1905. Did John know these people?
If old vacated school houses could talk, they would tell of children who knew not one
word of English when they came to school and the teacher that could not understand German.
While the children were learning their English vocabulary, the teacher was learning German.
In the predominately German areas the Lords Prayer was recited at the beginning of the
school day at least until the children learned to recite the Pledge or Alligence.
Willis Friske claims that the school on John Eckerdts land was called the Antwerp
School.
76A
HISTORY OF ROCK LAKE AND SURROUNDING COUN-
TRY
Written By Ione Elsberry (About 1958-59)
In the year 1886 if you stood upon the banks of Rock Lake,
or De La Roche as the Indians called it, you could have seen
nothing but prairie as far as the eyes could see. With the exception,
perhaps, of an encampment of Indians from the Turtle Mountains.
They had with them their crude two-wheeled carts. The wheels
were higher than the back of the poor little pony drawing it.
Their teepees made circular at the bottom, with a hole in the top
through which the supporting pole projected.
The squaws from this camp would be picking up buffalo
bones with which the prairie was plentifully strewn. Many of
the horns still fastened to the skulls. Some would be digging
seneca roots (or snake root). These commodities were hauled in
the rudely constructed carts, over what was known as the old fur
trail. A trail so deeply worn that it was difcult for a horse to travel
in it. The trail ran from the Red River to Winnipeg, and passed
about seven miles north of the present town. At this time on the
prairie there were large droves of deer and antelope.
In the spring of 1886, two brothers. William and Thomas
Elsberry, came here from the state of Missouri and homesteaded
on the banks of Rock Lake. William built on the west bank of the
lake, opposite of the present day town. Thomas built three miles
north on an arm of the main lake. For several years after their
arrival, geese and ducks nested in large numbers on the small
islands opposite the town.
In the spring of 1888, Dr. G. Vaughan, now of Cando, settled
one mile south of Wm. Elsberry. At this time, Churches Ferry.
forty-one miles distant, was the nearest railway station. During
the year of 1888 the St. John branch was built. It ran from St.
John to Churchs Ferry. This made Perth, sixteen miles away. the
nearest grain market and Rolla, twenty-two miles, the nearest
trading point. About the year 1897. Mr. Brooks homesteaded the
quarter of land on which our present schoolhouse stands.
In the summer of 1898 the surrounding country was practi-
cally all settled by a large colony of people from the states of
Michigan, Iowa, and Indiana. In the year 1899, Mr. Stephen John-
son, residing where Mr. Mahlon Eller now lives, was appointed
Postmaster of the newly established Post Ofce of Rock Lake.
In 1904, Mr. Joe Kelly and other speakers came through
this country asking the farmers to help build what is now the
Farmers Grain and Shipping Companys Railroad. Early in the
Summer of 1905 the Farmers Grain and Shipping Companys
railroad was surveyed and the towns were laid out. Soon after
the townsite of Rocklake was laid out, Mr. Joe Lichty moved his
store from Williston to Rocklake. Mr. Brooks started a hotel in
the building now occupied by Chas. Jahnke as residence. There
was a livery stable near-by.
Not long after this, Mr. N. W. Hawkinson came from Devils
Lake and put in a hardware store and lumber yard. Also the John
D. Gruber Co. put in a lumber yard and a line of machinery. The
stockholders of the First National Bank of Cando established
the State Bank of Rocklake, under the management of Car. A.
Lapham. Other business houses, Jahnke Bro. among them, started
in a short time. The post ofce was moved into town, with Mr.
John Eller as postmaster.
In 1906 the Methodist Church was built. In 1907 it was
dedicated. In 1907 the State Bank of Rocklake was made a First
National Bank and moved to the brick building now occupied
by it. Several residences had been built and new ones were being
added steadily making the town a ourishing one for its age. In
1906, the Rocklake Special School Dist. was organized and the
schoolhouse built in 1908. The Farmers State Bank was
established this year also. Now, if we were to compare the pres-
ent day town (about 1958 or 1959), which is made up of many
ne residences and good stores, to the little settlement of fty
some years ago, which was made up of a few rudely built shacks,
we would see that the village of Rocklake has progressed very
rapidly.
The village of Rocklake has a population of about 250 at
the present time, of which we are justly proud.
76B
76C
This is part of the
scene shown on
76D.
76D
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77
North Dakota
is the least visited
state in the United
States. Not many
people come to North
Dakota. With 2.9
million visitors, the
state gets less visitor
trafc than the outlet
mall of L. L. Bean
in Freeport, Maine.
It is a place of sau-
erkraut and Danish
pastry, of buffalo hot
dogs and cowboy
coffee, of lutefisk
and lefse made from
recipes hundreds of
years old, of Sons
of Norway dances.
Lefse is a at bread
made from potatoes
and our, rolled thin
as paper, baked,
spread with butter
and brown sugar or
ci nnamon, rol l ed
up like a long cigar.
Lutefisk, a form of
bone dry cod sh, is
soaked in a lye solu-
tion to break down
the tough bers. Wa-
ter is changed every
day for two weeks
to leach out the lye,
then the cod is boiled
and finally smoth-
ered in melted but-
ter. This traditional
Norwegian food is
a delight during the
holiday season and
on May 17, King
Haakon I Day, the
day of Norways
independence from
Sweden and Den-
mark in 935 A.D.
This is a place
of sunshine, where
100-degree heat ,
hailstones, and snow
storms take their turn
in predictable pat-
terns.
The state is un-
commercialized and
is like a breath of
fresh air.
78
1928
The government and railroad surveyors determined the path for the railroad and the
location of new towns. At town locations, lots were surveyed and staked out.
Selling town lots helped nance the building of the railroad. If a town was built
before the railroad came in, it ran the risk of the railroad bypassing it altogether. This
occurred often and resulted in many towns disappearing when the railroads were
constructed away from their communities.
1928
Buchholz, Albert, Farmer Stockraiser, S. 26, T. Smith, P. O. Rock Lake. 1903.
Bucholz, August, Farmer, and Breeder of Red Polled Durham Cattle, Percheron Horses,
Chester WHite Hogs and Rohde Island Red Turkeys and Geese, S. 35, T. Smith, P. O.
Rock Lake. 1910.
Buchholz, Mrs. Mary, Farmer, S. 8, T. Lansing, P. O. Calvin. 1911.
Bugge, P. O., Pharmacist, Bisbee.
Bulock, E. L. Farmer, S. 4, T. Virginai, P.O. Rock Lake. 1888.
Burkhart, S. W., Brookdale Farm, Breeder of Shorthorn Cattle, Chester White Hogs
and Shropshire Sheep, S. 15, T. Zion, P. O. Cando, 1894. Mr. Burkhart was born in
Pennsylvania and has served as Township Treasurer.
Burkholder, Mr.s Joseph, Farmer, S. 18, T. Teddy, P. O. Rock Lake, 1808.
Friske, Willis, Farmer and Stockraiser, S. 9, T. Sidney, P. O. Hansboro, 1897. Mr. Friske
was born and raised in Towner County.
1928
Gall, Thomas, Farmer, S. 16, T. Rock Lake, P. O. Rock Lake. 1906.
Gau, George, Farmer, S. 13, T. Twin Hill, P. O. Calio. 1898
Gergen & McFarlane, Real Estate and Loans, Bisbee.
Gerrard, A. B., Farmer, S. 1, T. New City, P. O. Bisbee. 1902. Mr. Gerrard was born
in Towner County in 1902, and married Johanna Bolmer.
Geyer, Adaline, Teacher, S. 22, T. Smith, P. O. Rock Lake.
Geyer, Peter, Farmer and Breeder of Miling Shorthorn Cattle, S. 22, T. Smith, P. O. Rock
Lake. 1897. Mr. Geyer was born in Volga District near Saratov, Russia, in 1853. He came
to U. S. in 1893 when he settled in Cavalier County. He then came to Towner County in
1897. He married Geohannetta Frick. They have two sons and six daughters living.
Antwerp was a rural post ofce Bryan Township about nine miles north of Rocklake. It was established May 8, 1901 with Peter Geyer, who
came here in 1897, as postmaster. After postal ofcials rejected the name Dover, it was named for Antwerp, Belgium at the suggestion of a
local resident who had come from there. The Belgian city dates from before the eighth century, when the Ganerbians, or Antwerpians, were
converted to Christianity. The name was never very popular with local residents, but a name change to Midway was rejected by postal ofcials
in 1902, and the post ofce operated as Antwerp until it closed July 31, 1907.
79
Papers which our people may have subscribed to:
Newspapers on microlm in the collection include Nord Dakota Herald and
Dakota Freie Presse, so important to the German-Russian researcher and
family genealogist. These two newspapers along with Der Staatsanzeiger
may be some of the most important newspapers for the German-Russian
genealogist. The Dakota Freie Presse is the oldest and my well be the
most important newspaper in North America of the German-Russians.
Organized in 1873 in Yankton, Dakota Territory, the paper was transferred
to Aberdeen, South Dakota, in 1906. The paper included news about the
immigration and settlement. The contributions of the readers about their
coming to the Dakotas, their settlement, and their experiences have proved
80
to be of great historical value. Included also were letters from Russia about
life in the German-Russian colonies. The published obituaries are most
important to genealogists. Dr. Horst Fode of West Germany is indexing
these obituaries from Dakota Freie Presse, which are being published in the
Heritage Review. In 1954 the paper ceased as an independent publication
and joined the American Herold.
The Nord Dakota Herald was established in 1907 and was published every
Friday in Dickinson, North Dakota. The readership consisted of 70 percent
German-Russian, 10 percent German-Hungarian, and 15 percent German. It
was owned by a corporation in which Catholic priests predominated. Dur-
ing Warld War I it was temporarily printed in English. Coverage included
articles about life of the
German Russians who
came primarily from
Bessarabia. Letters
from South Russia were
printed. The North
Dakota Herold is also
valuable for the Ger-
man-Russian family
researcher.
There was a time
when residents listened
closely for the locomotive
whistle and waited, on the
platform, to greet and meet
people and to see them off.
From Crosby to Cando,
from Fargo to Foxhome,
from Grand Forks to Graf-
ton, travel was by train. It
was their gateway to and
from the world, it was their
prepaid ticket to the halls
of the business world.
Life in the early vil-
lages centered around the
railroad station. Things
happened there. People
came and left daily, and
late news flashes were
heard over the railroad
telegraph. Newspapers,
in most issues, carried a
daily column advising
that Mr. Jones or Miss
Smith departed on No. 31.
People didnt much care
for fancy train names, they
simply referred to them by
number. The local railroad
agent was the hero of the
day, selling tickets, sorting
freight and reading the
telegraph. He was proudly
known as Mr. Railroad.
More on the John
and Amali Eckerdts in
the 1901 section, follow-
ing notations on Johns
brother and family who
were the next Eckerdts to
leave Russia 1900.
The 3rd and last of Conrad Eckerdts children known to leave Russia
permanently was Jacob.
Jacob Eckerdt & Phillip Heldt came from Lebanon on the Russia
Umperio, Dec. 10, 1900.
Jacob died Sept. 25, 1927. His obit was in Cando Herald as fol-
lows:
Jacob Eckerdt was born in German, December 1, 1854, and come to
this country in 1900, and home-
steaded the farm on which he has
lived ever since. He was one of
the sturdy pioneers who shared
the hardships that always must be
faced in a new country, but he lived
happily.Twenty-seven grandchil-
dren and several great grandchil-
dren, besides four brothers, John
of Sar l es,
Pete of Ne-
braska and
two in Ger-
many ( we
believe, one
was Con-
rad. We
know not of
the others.)
J a c o b
E c k e r d t
was quite a
prankster. Once when young, he piled snow up around and against all the
windows - covering the entire windows and told everyone when they woke
up in the morning that it had snowed 9 feet.
Edmund Heldt says, As I remember your grandparents and mine
came there 3 or 4 years before my parents did, the reason my parents came
to North Dakota was thru letters from John and Amali Eckerdt to come as
there was this free land to be had.
Edmund said: I was born and lived in a tar paper shack on the Farm
which Dad homsteaded about 1902. That part of North Dakota was all that
was left to homestead at the time when they all came from Russia.
In 5-1-1986 Fred Heldt said: I do know that they landed in New York
City, Ellis Island I believe, and came by train immediately to N. Dakota and
it seems they all barged in on John and his family. They had the homestead
arranged and while this was in the middle of the winter 1900-1901, in the
Spring they built two sod huts - one for Jacob Eckerdt family and one for
Philip Heldt family - my mothers family. The Jacob Eckerdt children were
all born in Russia. Lydias mother may have been Polish on both sides of
her family. I remember her brother Carl very well for the reason that at
that time the phonograph had not yet been invented and Carl played the
Accordian and it facinated me no end. It was the only music I had heard
aside from the harmonica.
Lawrence Welk was of this time same band of Germans but Berlin
was not. He was a Jew. I had some experince with Yiddish when I lived
in Havana, Cuba. It is a bastardized Jewish about half German. None of
the Eckerdts or Heldt spoke it. They spoke German but what I now as I
look back, would term a Hillbilly German. They were Agriculture people
and not well informed.
Jacob was in N.D. for only a short time (less than a year). He re-
turned to Neuheim to sell the family farm which he
inherited. His family feared they would never see
him again. Traditionally, the oldest son inherited the
farm. This farm was called a Kutor. It is discussed
on previous pages. It must have been of consider-
able acreage and value to deserve the risk and cost
of returning to sell it. Jews handled the trasaction.
He traveled at night and stayed at the homes of Jews
during the day.
Margarette did relate to her children regarding
Catherine the Great, that the German language was
suppressed.
My parents left Russia in 1900 had to stop in
England as Elisabeth was a baby and got sick so they
didnt land in U.S. tell 1901. Stayed and worked for
a farmer but lived with Redingers, then homesteaded
and built sod house and barn to live in.
Heldts around Jan. 01 were delayed in Liver-
pool when one kid came down with whoopingcouph.
Four day trainride to Perth - end of line - then driven
by sleigh to Phils sisters where they worked - spring
- homesteaded - working for other farmers as well.
81
82
The one who lled out Jacobs death certicate recorded in 1927 (just 27
years after coming to the U.S.) that Jacob had 4 brothers. We can account
for only 3 (Peter, John and a Conrad, who came to visit in the early 1920s).
We hope that a discover of missing records: 1859-1888, will reveal this
brother.
JACOB ENTERED THROUGH ELLIS ISLAND
Wendell Grimm brought with him from Russia to Itasca near Mpls. a
few seeds. He noticed no winter wheat or hay, planted them there and
in excitement his English became German and so came Alphalfa from
Everlasting Clover.
Jacob entered through Ellis Island.
82A
82B
83
Konrad farmer, died Jan. 22, 57. Lived
in Hannah. Died in Rolla at Community
Hospital. Was there for 3 weeks, born Oct.
18, 1888 and was 68 years old at death,
born at Odessa Russia, didnt know moth-
ers maiden name, wife was Carrie Martin,
served in WWI, died from fall while loading
frozen hay bales striking him in the chest
in his farm yard.
84
JACOB
Called Aunt Grete by her neices (Eck-
erdts), she never talked English and did not like
it that they could not talk to her in German.
When Margarette was in the nursing home,
her family Bible (was very elaborate & as
tradition had it) with geneology within. Upon
leaving the nursing home, her Bible could not
be located.
Margaret was in the Cando hospital for
eight months prior to her death. She had been
living in Cando. Born Oct. 1, 1854, was 86,
born in Russia. Father was born in Russia.
Ron found no one knew her fathers name or
mothers maiden name. Her mother was born
in Russia. Buried in Hansboro, died June 19,
1941.
Death Certificate information: Alex
Nic)olas born Dec. 22, 1897 died March 14,
1967, so 69 when died. Farmer. Lists birthplace
as Germany and mothers name as Margaret
Hiatt. Wifes name Grace Olafson, died in
Fargo at St. Lukes. Lived in Smith Tsp. Died
of Hodgkins disease - had it for 2 years.
Eugene
and
Kath-
erine
John
Some of Jacob Eck-
erdts children
85
Many family histories have been led with the Germans from Russia Society in Bismarck.
A few of these were in part derived from diarys of old-timers who came here from Russia and
who recorded events and names in their communities back there.
With hopes of nding some connection to our names and/or names associated with them
-Geyers, Heldts, Redigers, Rhams, Eckerdts -those who came here from Nuehiem, Kolb, Huck,
or Saratov -we searched through these records last year at the GRHS convention in Fargo in vain. There was bare mention of any
names as these from the Towner or Cavalier County area.
The quest continues for contributions in this way; others who can provide data of interest connecting or linking incidents
and migration patterns, particularly in Russia.
It was hoped that some of the folks on the 1909 (Plat Map) might have in common a derivative of some sorts and that
their children might have documented data searched out. Names perhaps such as Krieger, Krom, Koester, Ginther, and Rempel.
Where can their off-springs be reached? Eugene Norheim implies that there is almost no likelihood of land connec-tion insofar
as hand-me-down estates. Perhaps thus, a plat study is in vain in that those names now found would have no relationship to those
originally owning this land. Especially Germans from Russia.
Edmund Heldt said that a number of Germans from Russia, some of whom came from our areas there, were not particularly
content with opportunities in North Dakota; that land they were seeking had already been homesteaded and thus migrated to Re-
gina. One such name he thought was Wyant, a bachelor he recalls who visited his home some. Anyone know any of his offsprings
or where-abouts? It is highly possible that none of the above names, Krieger and so on, were among these Germans from Russia
who also went to Regina. Do you know? Can you think of any of these names?
A small comparison of name-change has been noted on the 1909 chart; those names followed by a question mark indicate the 3rd map, which is undated and unknown as per
date. Any help dating it? Any and all comments regarding land-change names and incidents welcome!!!
84A
84C
69A
69b
Gene & Beth Norheim
Attended ND State U. beginning in 1949. Entered U.S. Marine Corps in 1952, served in Korean War after
which returned to Rock Lake and began farming. Married Beth Scobba from Perth in 1956. Daughter Sandra
born in 1957 and Son Curtis born in 1958.
Lived in Newtown, ND in late 50s employed as oil eld trucker and returned to Rock Lake in 1959 and resumed
farming until retirement in November of 1997. School Board member 21 years. Sandra lives in Chicago,
employed as Sr. ight attendant for American Airlines. Curt lives in Fargo, owns and operates his transmission
repair shop and is single.
69C
85
Jacobs was 11 miles west and 2 miles North of Sarles. Thelma lived there in 1986.
Philips dad John died young. He was about 4 and he
was 14 when his mother died. Philip Heldts mothers name
was Margarette Hindenberg. Philip Heldt said his dads
name was John. John Held, Philips dad, was an engineer
on the Czrs train. His brothers were older and looked after
him. He went to school and took up painting and barbering.
Ron has copies of Philips passport.
Of the brothers of Philip, Frederick and Carl and sister
Marcia, only Philip and Marcia are known to have come
to the U.S. The t was added to Held at Ellis Island. It
is supposed to be Held. Another incident during the trip
to the United States which Mr. Heldt recalls vividly hap-
pened in an English immigration ofce. The ofcial there
ordered the Heldts to stand when an American ofcial
arrived. The American ofcial asked them why they were
standing, and told them they were Americans now and
didnt have to stand.
1. Edmond Heldt
2. Partual or Portual
3. Barbara ACT?
4. Alex Heldt or Alex Eckerdt
5. Phillip Heldt, Jr.
6. Fred Heldt
7. Cox
8.
9. Robert Geyer
10. Betty Heldt?
11. Co ? Alice Rham?
12. Parchly
13. Bessie Geyer
14. Gerdie Co???
86
Mrs. Phillip Heldt
Jacobs Katherine:
87
Philip Heldt died Thursday before Nov 14, 1969. He was 93, born July 14, 1869. Farmed east of Hansboro
until 1913 and then moved near Sarles to farm until 1913. 1930 when he retired. Sept of 1969 he was in the Odd
Fellows Home in Devils Lake. Maried Katherine Eckerdt Sept. 5 ,1893. She died Dec. 1927. Johannes Ludwig &
Margareta Hilgenberg Heldt Rosental often referred to as Rosenthal. There chil = Frederich, Johanes, Carl, Dorotea
became a Redinger born in Rosental, Johann Phillip b. 69. Alexander Held died Aug. 12, 1899 in Neuheim and
buried there. Phil Sr. Heldts bros= John, Carl, Frederick, & Sis Mary & Phil was youngest. Kuder (Boharsukwa)
in his bible. Kathleen Eckerdt born in Kamferland. Phil & Kat married by pastor Schiltz in Boharsukwa.
Philip was offered a Job in Chicago as a painter of wagons, etc - pinstriper but Katherine wanted to be a farmer
with her kin in Rocklake area, so he went and didnt do well with farms losing two. And since he could write,
theyd all have him wiring letters back to Russia - Grampa and Jacob and all on Sundays instead of relaxing after
working all week and made them mad. 88
110
Philip J. Heldt and his family consisting of his
wife and four children, whose ages ranged from six
to a few months, and his wifes parents left Russia
in December, 1900. The Heldt family was delayed
a week in Liverpool, England, when Betty came
down with whoopingcough or measles. They nally
arrived in New York in January and took a four-day
train ride to Perth, which was as far as the train went
in those days.
Another incident during the trip to the United
States which Mr. Heldt recalls vividly happened in
an English immigration ofce. The ofcial there
ordered the Heldts to stand when an American ofcial
arrived. The American ofcial asked them why they
were standing, and told them they were Americans
now and didnt have to stand..
After the Heldts arrived in Perth they were driven
by sleigh to the home of Mr. Heldts sister, where they
spent the rst winter. That spring he homesteaded in
Towner county near Hansboro. He worked for other
farmers in the area as a hired man while he broke his
own land and got started.
He must have continued on the farm to hire out
for the Heldts also. Six Heldts were born in Russia.
John Held and Velma had one son Glenn or more who
was postmaster in Rocklake. They had a son who mar-
ried an Eckerdt. There were originally four boys.
Even though this ticket was sent 28 years after
the last Eckerdt came to the U.S. to stay, it veries
their exact last residence in Russia.
AGRS Vol 9 number 1 spring of 86 journal has about Nue-
Ester claims that Philip came to Crocus, ND, which doesnt even
exist. Philip was only able to located 80 acres for homestead land. In
1928, Phillip sent a steamship ticket to Johann Joh. Heldt address =
Chutor Nowoselowka, (Neuheim) Stania Ladoschskaja(RR Station part
of his address), Kuban Oblast (District), Karokas (Kawkas(Caucasus)).
He lived in Kutor Neuheim which belonged to the colony (village) of
Neuheim). Keith Eckerdt Heldt died 12-1927.
Philip John was a carpenter and made wagon wheels and was a
painter too. One girl got whooping cough so was held up in Liverpool.
Philip John and Marcia was a Rediger that came over too, Frederick and
Carl all brothers and sisters. Marcia and Philip only that came over at
that time. They came from the Royalty of House of Hesse and they were
warriers. Philips dads name she thinks was John Held. Phlip was born
in 1868, died at 94 in 1962. Catherine died at 52 in 1927. They came
rst to Hansboro and werent satised with things. Canada offered them
concessions etc. so they went to Sascatchewan. John and Christian Fruck
were big drinkers. One had a big wife, but he still went home and beat
her. Heldts had 13 kids. Of course, young Alex was only one year old
when he died. John and Mary Heldt were only 5 and 6 when they came
over. Aunt Marie Redinger lived with Philip Heldt. Husband died quite
soon after coming over. They homesteaded across the eld and north of
grampa. So she went to and lived with Philip. Train went as far as Perth in
1901. Didnt go to Sarles until
1905. They before that, went to
Rolla and Hanna for trading. A
Wiehart or Wiengard was a big
hired man Edmond didnt like.
When his mother xed buns,
he would gulp one down in one
swallow. Six Heldts were born
in Russia. John Held and Velma
had one kid Glenn or more who
was postmaster in Rocklake.
They had a child who married
an Eckerdt. There were originally four boys.
Sons and daughters of Philip Heldt: John, Mary oldest, Philip, Eliza-
beth all born in Russia, Fred, Alexander still around ND farms, Edmond,
Violet, Adolph, Eleanor, Ester, Ruby, Alexander died over there in Russia.
Alex Heldt had a bunch of pictures. Philip said they lived on the Kuban
River, but in the Bible is Rosenthal and thinks where he was born.
Ester visited in Germany one of Philip Heldts brothers kids named Theresa
and Maria. Theresa was old. Maria had a son named Kurt. Maria would be
Fred and Esters rst cousin. They also came here in 81. Kurt may have go
divorced. They lived near Galesburg near the Alps near a larger city called
Kinpton or something like that. Alexs rst wife died at 57, 5-5-1962. Her
sis was John Helds wife.
Philip Heldt Jr. married Francis Geyer.
Fred found out about the Maria in Germany thru the Red Cross. Fred
married a Chicago girl. Philip Heldt died at 94, Nov 10, 1963. He was buried
in the family plot in Hansboro Cemetery. Grandsons were palbearers = Donald,
Glen and Jack Heldt and Robert Hanggi, Terrance Wirth and Alphonse Schuler.
Both Ester and Eleanor and each daughter went over in 78 to Germany. The
present Heldt decendents near Sulsberg near Kempton - Kepton being the
larger (Germany).
Edmond W. Heldt, 9331 18th Ave. W., Everette, Washington 98204. 206-
353-1554 Loganberry Lane. Unable to contact 8-03.
1961, about three years ago, through the Red Cross, relatives of the Heldts
were discovered in the French zone of West Germany. John Hedlt, a son of Mr.
Heldts brother, Frederick, was contacted. The two families corresponded regu-
larly in the 1980s. Ruby spoke of Kurt and Maria Marklewitz had a daughter,
Dagniar. I dont know who they are.
He was just about 95 when he died.
By 1961 two sons and two daughters have died. They are Adolph, Philip,
Mrs. Jack OConnor (Elizabeth) and Violet Heldt. Three brothers and two
sisters have also died.
91
Who are the above people? Redmgers? Bucholz?
91B
91C
91D
91E
91F
91G
91H
91I
92
93
95
Taken probably in the 1940s or 50s long after abandoned and prior to being destroyed.
The homestead July 9, 2005 as seen
standing in the road. The road is no
longer a trail, as it was in 1993 as
numerous thoroughfares are. One
would think that since this area is at
the north tip of Rock Lake, ood-
ing would be a problem. There
are elds with standing water and
ducks on both sides of some roads
due to heavy rains, but the home-
stead land is quite free from this.
The large trees in front dont appear
in the picture with the buildigns.
Trees do appear in the picture to the
left and behind the house and to the
right and behind the barn. These
may be the same places where the
trees are now.
Looking at the trees behind or east
of where the house may have been.
The strawy area is a rock pile.
Some of this rock may have been
put there in 1898 or shortly after
or/and some may have come from
the foundation of a building on our
farm. It may also be covering the
95A
95B
Standing on the south side of the rock pile looking across
the raod as our family may have done in the late 1890s
or early 1900s to the Pete Geyer homestead amidst the
closet grove of trees seen here in the photo. See geyer
section for closer view.
An old tree down within the clumps of
trees. Imbedded into the tree and sur-
rounding it were small pieces of farm
mechinery which Ron brought home.
Rocks amidst the grass under the trees.
95C
Looking west from under the
trees on west side of property.
Object is an old grain binder, pos-
sibly vacated there any number of
years ago. To the left and not in
this view is the extreme north tip
of the large Rock Lake as seen on
present ND highway maps.
A few trees and some (if it shows
up) sighting of ooding 1/8 mile
west of the trail which runs north
and south past the west side of the
Geyer homestead.
Plowing with steam engines. Note cook car & bunk shack.
96
House in picture is not
the sod house that John
Eckerdt first lived in.
This house was built
of popular poplar poles
and much straw from the
land around 1900. The
only purchased lumber
was for the roof. The
house consisted of 2
bedrooms, a large liv-
ing room and a kitchen.
Daughters, Pauline, Lin-
da and Lydia (1923 Sar-
les High School gradu-
ate) were born there.
Also, a son - Adolph,
who died in infancy, was
born on the homestead.
By 1910, the homestead
had grown to 6 quarters
and the family moved
into Sarles. The farm
was rented to Philip Heldt, and later Conrad Eckerdt and his family lived there. (described
by Alberts daughter)
From Doings Past and Present in Bryan Township Mid January 1910: John Eckerdt
has some especially ne seed ax - it was grown on the lots he purchased at the head of
the lake and isfree of all weed seed and wild oats. Hanna and Rolla is where they went
for supplies before train came thru. John was 10 miles from Rock Lake, 10 or 11 from
Sarles and 10 from Hansboro.
Also, Mrs. Jacob Eckerdt and sons Jacob and Conrad were callers at the home
of John Eckerdt. There will be a social dance at John Eckert Sr.s Tuesday evening,
February 1. Jacob Eckert and wife and Albert Buchholz were callers at the John Eckert
home Sunday. J.P. Pettit, wife and family, J.O. Carter, wife and family, Cleve Sheron,
wife and daughter, Misses Amelia and Pauline Eckert, Fred Crossland and J.E. Weinberg
were callers on Buford Ayres Sunday.
A young school teacher by name of Wienberg was Johns farm hand. He must have
continued on the farm to hire out for the Heldts also. He was a large man and Edmond
didnt like him. When his mother xed buns, he would gulp one down in one swallow.
From an article dated January 1911: Mr. and Mrs. John Eckert, who live about nine
miles southwest of Sarles gave a New Years party to their many friends and neighbors
on last Sunday. Those present all agree that Mr. and Mrs. Eckert are royal entertainers
and all went home well please with the affair.
Amali wanted her chil-
dren to attend a city school.
This prompted the move
in 1911 to Sarles. Lydia is
the only child of John and
Amalis to graduate from
H.S. H.S. graduation was not
common in Rural America in
the teens and 20s.
John then rented the
farm out. Ernie Hogan when
92, told Ron that John was
not a good farmer. He said
that John had a mechani-
cal mind. Lydia said that
John could x anything. He
repaired many key-wind
clocks.
Lydia was seven years
old when she moved
to town. Grandmother
Schutz moved into town
with them.
Before that
grandmoth-
er and Leo
l i ved i n a
small house
on J ohns
farm land on
a corner near
a school.
I n a J a n.
1910 local
paper were:
There
will be a so-
cial dance at
John Eckert
Sr.s Tuesday
evening,
February
1.
J. P. Pettit, wife and family, J. O. Carter, wife and family,
Cleve Sheron, wife and daughter, Misses Amelia and Pauline
Eckert, Fred Crossland and J. E. Weinberg were callers on
Buford Ayres Sunday.
In a Feb. 1910 local paper were:
Albert Buchholz was visiting Jacob Eckerts Sunday.
The social gathering and dance at John Eckert Sr.s was
well attended and enjoyed.
In a Jan. 5, 1911 local paper were:
Mr. and Mrs. John Eckert, who live about nine miles
southwest of Sarles gave a New Years party to their many friends
and neighbors on last Sunday. Those present all agree that Mr.
and Mrs. Eckert are royal entertainers and all went home well
pleased with the affair.
97
Others (mostly Germans) from Rus-
sia in Towner County: (1) Jacob Gaub
from Cologne & Bergdorf S. Russia
married (1st wedding) in German
Church, England.
(2) Ed Haberstroh & Caroline Schell
from Worms & Neurotz Russia.
(3) Ephraim Krueger, son of Dan
Klebe married Albertina Klebaum
from Maruenaska Russia.
(4) Gustave Krueger, (5) Peter
Krueger
(6) John Schumacher & wife Karo-
lena Truebwasser
(7) Friedrich Wagner(Wegner) & wife
from Poland & Durmanska Russia.
(8) Conrad Walder b. 1839 Saratov
buried Rock Lake, md. Kath. Frank in
1896 Russia & Eliz. Henke, Russia
(9) Son Jacob md. Anna Yost from
Stephens. Homestead near Rock
Lake & had a garage in R.L. 1915
(10) Dau Amelia from Walder Rus-
sia
(11) Son John G md. Magdalina
Schmidt in Russia
(12) John Weisz likely from Bessara-
bia md. Christina Aman in Russia.
(13) dau. md. Gottlieb Schilling Rus-
sia - daughter of Ch. Schilling and
Dora Herschorn
97A
98
Reported in March 8, 1918 Rock Lake Ripples:
The usual spring changing of farm tenants has begun. Gilber Smerer having re-
cently moved to the Chas. Morre farm near Brumbaugh and John Krishuk going on to
the vacated Smerer place.
From an article April 1911: C. Fruck and Wm. Fricke were to Cando
on business last week.
Mrs. John Eckerdt and MRs. Jacob Eckerdt visited at Arndts last
week a few days.
98A
1910 Sarles
Most settlements in N.D. followed the railroads but Sarles was the
exception. Settlement near Sarles began in 1883. The township named
and organized Cypress township in 1888 - pioneers were predominately
of Scottish ancestry with other nationalities being Irish and English. They
came to Canada then Manitoba - then North Dakota free land - homesteading
a quarter section of land for ve years gave the people
title to the land. Additional land was acquired by
Tree Claims on Squatters Rights. Early names were
Murchie, Hazlitt, Brown, Shanks, Shaw, MacLean,
Naismith, McDonald. There were only prairie trails
(& still are) instead of roads. A road was made in late
1880s and/or early 90s from Sarles to Langdon or
rather from the township to Langdon. It was used to
haul grain by team and sleigh to Langdon with a half
way station between the two points. The grain was
mostly sacked and marked and if a driver had trouble
he would set sacks off by side of trail and pick them up
later. Grain was also hauled to pilot mound Manitoba.
This was the only way until train or rather railroad ar-
rived in Hannah. One of the rst roads built was the
Hannah Sarles Road started in 1898. Down the years
99
has been known as the Town Line Road. One room sod buildings small
served as rst homes for many imigrants. Blacktopping wasnt down until
1979 (Main Street). Electricity wasnt put in the farms until early 50s.
Phones 1916. The village was formed in 1906. There were low drainage
problems here but the layout of Sarles around a square is different from most
of the towns in N.D. because the settlers came from England and Scotland
MOVE TO SARLES
100
and this is their preferred design. The business places surround the square
and the dwelings in turn surround them. The square was usually bogged
down in mud or snow requiring sidewalks 3 feet off the ground. This made
it nice for farmers to tie up their horses and step onto the walks.
The Great Northern Railroad approached Sarles from the Southeast.
The grain elevators and depot were located on the east side of the village.
Sarles was at the end of the railroad and facilities for turning around and
a round house were located at the north side of town. Both have been
removed because of the declining use of the RR. By 1906, 400 pop. at
this time William Friske was assessor. Town name chosen in honor of E.
Y. Sarles govenor of Dakota 1907.
George Drowley was founder of the Sarles advocate in 1905. In 09
he sold to C. L. George who operated the paper until 1962. He also printed
the Calvin Times until Sept. 1,1927. The two papers were combined under
the name of Western Cavalier County Advocate. George Drowley then be-
came agent for Stan-
dard Oil Company in
Sarles.
Si x di fferent
grain companies were
represented in Sarles. 34 businesses were in Sarles 06. Hotel Sarles was
one of the nest in Northwest - three stories about 30 rooms in 1933 it was
torn down and the lumber sold to locals. The Opera House had a bowling
alley pool hall and restaurant and dance hall on second oor.
Present Presbyterian Church built 06-07 same one today. Largest
congregation and rst church because of the many Scottish people here.
From a local newspaper article: On Monday smoke could be seen
in every direction from threshing rigs that were in operation. We believe
every rig in this territory is at work although somewhat handicapped by
the shortage of help. Grain has been coming into town in a steady stream
and it wont be long before all the elevators will be lled to the top as cars
are not obtainable for the shipment of the grain to the cities.
Hundreds of small towns and sites were established on the prairie of
North Dakota as the Great Northern and Northern Pacic Railroads built across
the state with a network of branch lines. Settlers came with dreams of making
these town sites into thriving towns and even metropolitan citis.
These settlers and their progeny turned this land into a food and ber
breadbasket of the world but the town sites and small towns did not reach the
potential dreamed of by the settlers. They are becoming ghost towns, on the
road to extinction just as the mighty buffalo that roamed this land.
Brovald authored a book Silent Towns on the Prairie, captured the
ghostly effect of some of these towns in photographs and narrated the es-
sence of why these towns were born and why they are now disappearing and
becoming ghost towns. Sarles and Rock Lake is on the list.
101
101B
101C
102
From a local Nov. 19, 1920 newspaper: The whiskey run-
ners operating in northwestern North Dakota are making
what they believe will be their nal trips. The mercury
has dropped to below zero and the little urries of snow
daily give every indication that a real snow storm is in
the making. When it comes, with the mercury below
zero, it is impossible to drive across North Dakotas
plaints. The runners are carrying heavy loads on
their return trips from the border this week but the
roads are frozen and where the going is smooth, the
whiskey sixes thunder along between 50 and 60
miles an hour. The cars are traveling three and four
in a string and for the rst time in several weeks
they are traveling south from the line with-
out an empty car ahead as a feeler. The
women the runners have been carrying
with them for protection against hasty
shooting on the part of authorities
are absent.
Roads were poor, in the early
days, and weather was al-
ways a threat. The early cars
were unreliable and were
usually open air.
Snow blocked
the roads, and
the towns were
i s o l a t e d f o r
several days at
a time. Travel
of any distance
was done by
train, and you
could get almost
anywher e on
the railroad. It
was convenient
and faster than a
horse and the coach car was
warmer than a wagon.
Hundreds of small towns were
built on the prairie, and the
new railroad connected them.
Then they began to shrink.
One by one, the towns began
to lose business, then popu-
lation. The schools closed,
the stores went out of busi-
ness, and people moved away
and left only a smattering of
residents. For two or three
generations, the down-sizing
of rural communities has take
place. It has shredded the
fabric of American life and
is changing the landscape.
There is little chance that the
trend can be reversed.
Towns were spaced about eight to ten miles apart on the spine of a rail-
road. You could travel from one town to another, by horse and wagon,
and be back in one day. The small towns were stepping stones on the
prairie. The towns had all the services needed to live comfortably.
There were schools, stores, churches, a grain elevator, hardware store,
a depot, cafe, saloon, garage, a gasoline station, and a blacksmith who,
with his hammer, anvil, and forge, pounded metal bars into horseshoes,
But each passing year sees more of these businesses close and the small
towns move closer to becoming ghost towns.
103
Old Postcards From Sarles & other Towns:
Whist was a popular card game, passed many a winter day near a
stove. John and others gathered daily on cold winter days to play the
game often in Alberts blacksmith shop.
One 1909 postcard shows a Harvest scene on the Robert Hall Farm
near Sarles.
Sarles-the citizens of this town are offering a reward of $300 for the
arrest and conviction of a dog poisoner.
Dickinson-Rev. J. W. Brown recently resigned the pastorate of the First
Congregational Church to engage in the laundry business.
Mr. Carl Lapham received young bald headed eagle from the taxi-
dermist on Friday which was shot in this district last fall. It is a beautiful
specimen and mounted to the best advantage. The bank may soon look like
a natural history museum if more specimens are added to the two unusual
specimens already there.
Thursday. There is only half a school present due to the fact that diphtheria
has entered town. Johnnie Walker and (??-unable to read microlm) Weeden
are down with it and the two families are quarantined. The school house
was thoroughly fumigated Wednesday evening and all precaution is being
taken to prevent the spread of the disease.
103
Dec. 1911 Mr. and Mrs.
Johnnie Eckerdt had Xmas diner
at the Rahm home.
Passed down to Ron from
his mother, Lydia: 1911 was
such a protable year for Flax
harvest (John was one of very
few who had a Flax crop that
year) that John bought a new
Case automobile. However,
in a May 1916 newspaper is
told that he took delivery of a
Case auto.
Johns house in Sarles
had two stories and 3 bedrooms.
John worked as a gunsmith on
the property.
From an November 7,
1912 article: John Eckerdt had a
well drilled last week near his home.
Albert was born in 1913.
Local News, Feb. 17, 1913: Mr.
George McLean Gave a dinner party
at his home on Sunday. Those present
were Mr. and Mrs. Paul Higgins; Mr.
and Mrs. R. E. Stepp; Mr. and Mrs. J.
E. Barker; Mr. and Mrs. John Eckherdt
and Dr. Erskine.
From a news article: July 13,
1914, John Eckerdt patented a churn
attachment some years ago which de-
creases the amount of labor in churning
for butter. Messrs. John Eckerdt and Geo.
McLean are the owners of the Patent and
they have put a good many of the attachments
in farm houses and everyone that has one that
has used them declare that it is the real thing. The average time
of churning required is about 10 minutes and the owners have in
one instance churned buter in 6 minutes.
From an August 13, 1914 article: John Eckerdt built a
cook car last week.
From a newspaper, April 1, 1915: John Eckerdt has just
completed a ne large porch on the west side of his house in
this village.
When Amali was in the hospital or at a doctors ofce,
John overheard the doctor tell someone: Well just let this one
die now since shes suffering.
This angered John to the point that he was going to get his
gun and shoot the doctor. He later found out that the doctor was
talking about someone else.
Obituary.
Amalia, wife of John Eckerdt of this village, died on Monday morning June
7th, 1915 at the Hannah Hospital after an illness extending for some time.
Mrs. Eckerdt was born in Russia on January 27th, 1869. She was united in marriage
to John Eckerdt in the year 1891, in Russia.
They emigrated to Winnipeg, Canada the following year, where they remained a year.
Other accounts indicate that they wintered there 1892. From there they went to Walhalla,
N.D., where they resided for four years. Mr. Eckerdt decided to take up a homestead, so
they moved to this vicinity, being among the rst settlers to locate here.
About four years ago they moved to this village, and have been residents of this place
ever since.
Mrs. Eckerdt leaves to mourn her loss, her husband and ve children.
Mrs. Flemming of Churches Ferry, N.D., Pauline, Linda, Lydia and Albert.
Mrs. Eckerdt was an ideal mother and a highly appreciated neighbor and will be sadly
missed by her many friends and neighbors, and the sympathy of the entire community is
extended to the sorrowing relatives.
Funeral services were held at the Presbyterian Church on Thursday of last week Rev.
McKinnon of Calvin preached the funeral sermon. Burial took place at the Dash Cemetery
on Friday morning at 9:00 am.
This source was Lydia. Many spring violets were put on Grammas grave. Lydia said
that this was the only time she saw her Dad cry. The town ladies lined the grave with linen
and decorated it with forget-me-nots owers.
In July 1991, Ron contacted Rev. Wallace Smith of Calvin, ND to pursue comments
reguarding Sarles Church records and any clues reguarding the discrepancies of Carl Schootz.
He applied considerable effort in this search and replied after having checked the Dash
Cemetary where infant Adolph and Grandmother Amali are buried, after checking church
records and visiting with old timers.
May 1916: C. E. Blackorby, R. T. Elsberry and
ye editor autoed to Sarles last Tuesday. Mr. Blackorby
delivering his Case automobile which he had sold to
John Eckardt of that place.
Local News, June 2, 1916: John Eckerdt and
family went to Hansboro last Tuesday, where they
attended the celebration.
After the death of Amali and perhaps around
1917, John advertised for a housekeeper. Ernie Hau-
gen said he advertised for a bride.
Sarles was the last town on the railroad. One
candidate came to Sarles in response to Johns ads
but on seeing John on the platform with his large
beard, stayed on the train as it turned around, and
returned to where she departed. This according
to Ernie Haugen.
According to Jeanne Knappen, when
Margaret Ankerstrom got off the train, John was
surprised to see that she had 5 youngsters with
(her children). So he married her.
From a May 2, 1918 local paper: On Thursday
evening of last week occurred the marriage of Mrs. John
Ankerstrom of Duluth, Minn., to Mr. John Eckerdt of
this village. The ceremony was performed by Justice
of the Peace, Mr. L. D. Fancher at the grooms home.
Only intimate friends were in attendance. The, Advocate
joins with their many friends in wishing them a long and
happy wedded life. Mr. and Mrs. John Eckerdt enter-
tained a large number of friends to a dance in the Opera
House on Friday evening. Everyone present reports a
delightful time.
Jeanne said that when her and Berna were 5 or 6
years old, and road in their Grampas 1911 Case, they
held on for dear life because of the speed and bumps
while driving on the prairie roads. She remembers
John as being a practical joker - pulling little tricks on
the children.
March 1918 Alex Epstien was in Sarles area.
In one of the local papers in 11-1920 was a note requard-
ing Sam Epstein visitng their daughter Mrs. Griver in
Hansboro.
Barbara Horner states that John still farmed and thrashed
in the 20s and 30s. Even tho he rented out most of his
farm, he kept some acreage to farm for himself.
When Ron visited John & Margarets home in Sarles in 1941, a mark in his memory was the memory-picture of Bobby Holsingers shack with many old items including a model A Roadster
on the edge of Johns driveway on Johns property. 62 years later, Ron remembers the sight well and if we could press a button to produce a printout of our memory - picture. The items mentioned
above would be clearly represented. The connection between Johhn and Bobby is not real clear. His parents were married in Virginia 1891 . Bobby had 10 brothers and sisters.
John was thought of as being harsh and stern and yet by Jeanne as a practical joker - a trickster (as she remembers from around 1925.) John had one speed in his 1911 Case and that was
fast. He didnt slow down for much. Children were frightened since bumps would nearly throw them out of the car.
John and other old friends in their 70s took frequent trips shing in Canada. When going up a hill, one would run behind the Case with a wedge on a broomstick. The car had to climb the
hill in short leaps while one of his friends placed the wedge behind the wheel to prevent it from rolling back. Meanwhile, John would oor-board the accelerator and release the clutch to jerk the
car ahead another 5 to 8 feet. This continued to the top of the hill.
When Ron was in Sarles in 1951, a tree (seemed to be 6 or 7 years old) was growing up in the middle of the Case. Albert had made a trailer out of the axel. Many bodies of Model A & T
type cars were in the town dump. These bodies showed little rust. Two Model As were Estansons used car lot. Ron bought the cowl light from these for $4 and in 1959 sold them for $36 per
pair to a collector to help for his college costs.
Ron recalled the large number of guns and parts in the barn workshop as well as a large anvil and numerous blacksmith tools and hardware.
Unfortunately all of this was thrown out and the house burnt by the state in the 1950s or 1960s. Barbara Horner ended up with the pump organ that John built in the 1920s from a mail order
company - probably Sears or Montgomery Ward. Lydia said most items originated from these catalogues.
Lydia recalled tunnels through the snow to reach the authouse in the winter.
She told how her Dad required her to eat oat meal for breakfast. When John left the kitchen, she threw it in the slop bucket.
Although John was harsh and severe, he hosted many transients.
One of Johns best friends was the Epstien who ran the grocery store. It appears as if our family of John and Amalis generation had almost none of the typical prejudices. Germans in Russia
were normally extremely clanish and this characteristic continued in the U.S. even into the early-mid 1950s. Parents often shunned marriage out of a community. Ours were very different.
Summary Dates and Places: (done in 1986 not re-edited)
1854 Jacob Eckerdt born
1864 John Eckerdt born
1866 Peter Eckerdt born
1868 Amelia Schutz born
John Eckerdt grows to manhood in Eketerinodar So. Russia.
1886 John enters army 21 yrs old
1888-1891 John marries Amelia (20) 23 yrs old
1891 John is released from active duty army 26 yrs old
1892 John is drafted again 27 yrs old
1892 John sends money over to Russia to bring the following people. Am unsure of dates and consecutiveness:
Jacob Eckerdt - seems older than John (brothers) - died in 1927. At least one daughter (Rachel) was born there and was 9 when
she came here. 3rd- generation children claim they were to have come from Odessa - hinting then that they may all
have
grown up in Eketerinodar but then found themselves inOdessa?
Peter Eckerdt (brother) entered through New York & went to Hastings Nebraska. Peter had married in Russia and was said to
have
come from Klop.
1892 John defects. Leaves Russia along with the following Germans: Koschnek, Redinger, Geir, Rahm. Made their way to Antwerp
where they boarded a ship to U.S. Port of entry was: Nova Scotia. They went to Winnepeg.
Late 1892? Did all of them go to Winnepeg at the same time together?
28-31
1893 John walks to Neche and works on a farm 32
lived in the Wallahalla vicinity
1897 John acquires a start of a six-section homestead, builds sod house similar to that in Rus-
sia.
33 yrs old
1904 Amali Schutz Eckerdts mother and father. Carl came with them to U.S.
They lived in a house on a corner of Johns land near a school.
1910 Alois died. his legs were swollen badly at this point. Mother Schutz was always
carrying a Bible from which she read constantly.
Carl played accordian in dances. He married while here.
1905-08 Amalis brother Conrad and family came. One daughter dies on farm. Practiced
the
Jewish custom of Sitting Sheva during this event. Returned to Russia:

1898-1903 Four daughters and one son born to John and Amelia John=32 on farm.
1911 John and Amelia and family and mother Schutz move to Sarles.
1911-1913 Mother Schutz & Carl move.
1913 Albert born.
104
1931
John sent Albert to welding school and
in April 3, 1931 advertised general
blacksmithing in his barn.
Clock of Centenial.
105
Oct. 1, 1936 article: John Eckerdt reports that he has been busy repairing guns for local hunter.
Mr. Eckerdt is an expert gunsmith and work is sent to him from a wide territory. He followed the trade in the old country and also received considerable experience in the
Russian Army.
People didnt always retire in the 1930s and early 1940s, since there was not the same type of Social Security as in the 1990s and 2000s. Most elders worked as long as they
physically could. John was no exception.
Ron talked to as many old timers as he could in 1992 in Sarles. There
werent many left that remembered John. Two did remember him. One was
an Estenson. He recalled how John mocked the authorities who were keen on
catching bootleggers. They would run past the border guards at 70 mph with
their souped-up large 1928 cars.
Old sign
still in
Sarles 2005.
Was this
106
106A
Large evergreen tree to right planted by Art Ankert in early 1920s. Above right license plates such as John
should have had on his teens Case auto.
106B
106C
House across the street west of Johns prop-
erty. 1905. It appears to be vacant and will
fall to the fate of demolishment as many
have and continue to do.
107
Generation #8 Johns son and daughters.
108
The only child of John Eckerdts who remained in Sarles was Albert. Amelia married Clar-
ence Fleming. They lived near Churchs Ferry and later Chicago.
Polly married Roy Hanchet and lived most of their life in and near Peoria, IL. Lydia left
Sarles after H.S. graduation because, There was nothing there. (typical) and lived with Polly until
marrying Richard Knappen in Chicago. She lived in and around Peoria during most of her life.
Linda left Sarles to attend nurses school. She became a nurse and married Frank McMahon.
They lived in Baraga Michigan all of their adult lives. Linda became a devoted Catholic. Ron
recalls visiting their family in the early 1950s and noticed Lindas early morning attendances at
church.
The events of John and Amalis children may be covered in greater detail in their individual
histories if descendants record them. Their lives were in great part with much less turmoil than
their parents, grandparents and great grandparents.
109
Margaret born 1877 Germany. Came to Sarles from Duluth with her children
to marry John. Moved to Tacoma 7-11961. Died in Tacoma Jan. 1963.
110
This is of the only largest get-together of John Eckerdts daughters and their children known. Pics were taken in summer of 1962 on the lawn
of an old farm home rented by Ron and Mary Knappen for $25 per month.
Left to right back row: Richard Knappen, Ron Knappen, Loyd Hanchett & Roy Hanchett.
Next to last row: Bill Emory, Paul Knappen, Sis?, Doug Andreson, ?,?,?.
2nd row from front: Paul Emory, ?, ?, Donna?, Polly, ?, Eileen, Lydia.
Front row=Mostly Doug & Barbs children except the last row are Loyd & Donnas & Mary Knappen with Scott or Sue (top pic.)
111
Front row=Mostly Doug & Barbs, Loyd & Donnas ,
& children. Nic is between Paul and Sis.
112
Left to right=Eileen, Amelia, Bernice, Polly, Sis?, Barbara, Jeanne, Loyds Donna, Rons Mary and Kurt. 1962.
115
Below: 1) Ron born 12-35, 2)
Jeanne about 71, 3) Harrys
wife Eleanor (Jeannes sister-
in-law), 4) Barb about 65
suffered from anorism in brain
several years prior - Lindas
daughter, 5) Rons Mary born
1942, 6) Lydia Eckerdt Knap-
pen at 88. Rons mother.
Daugter of John Eckerdt and
Amali Schutz Eckerdt. July
1992. These three cousins
came here from Chicagoland
in July. This taken at JJs
Supper Club at the edge of
Galesville here. This visit
was always a bright spot in
Lydias life.
Left: Jeanne and Eileen
October 1972.
Above: Bernice,
Sis, Jeanne, Bar-
bara, Eileen, Polly,
Lydia. 6-27-1983.
1983: Barb,
Jeanne, Bernice,
Friend, Sis, Eileen,
Helen Phillips
(Richard Knappens
sister), Polly, Lydia.
116
Amelia (John & Amalis 1st daughter)
Jan. 10, 1918 article: Mr. and Mrs.
Clarence Fleming have moved from
thee Geo. McLean house into Mr.
Dingmans residence in the north
part of town.
Feb. 10, 1920: C. C. Fleming had a close call on Wednesday from having a bad runaway, when about a half dozen dogs
in our village gave chase agter his team.
Mar. 25, 1920: C.C. Fleming is the new village marshall.
See Amelia slso on page 93
with her 1st cousin Eckerdts.
117
Berna
has (by 2003)
lived most of
her life in Al-
buqurque. Her
daughter lives
in Minneapo-
lis. Eleanor
was a grade
school english
teacher.
Died Jan.
2004.
Paul was a salesman most of his
lfe. Nicol is a publisher in Madi-
son. Jay is a registered nurse and
was lives in Florida.
Harrys children are scattered
throughout the U.S.
Jeanne married Paul Knappen,
brother to Richard. This made
Jeanne an aunt to Ron Knappen as well as his 1st cousin. And Nic & Jay are Rons 1st and 2nd cousins.
Paul & Jeanne lived in Chicago, Downers Grove, Countryside, Willow Brook & Lisle.
118
June 7, 1917
article: Married.
On Wednesday
of this Mr. Roy
Hanchett and Miss
Pauline Eckerdt
were united in the
holy bonds of mat-
rimony at the Clyde
parsonage. Rev. A.
O. Birchenough of-
ciating.
The br i de,
who has lived in
Sarles and vicin-
ity all her life is
highly esteemed
by all and allwho
know her are as-
sured that she will make a happy
home for the young man who won
her as his wife.
The groom is a
popular young man
of this village who is
engaged in the painting
and decorating busi-
ness here.
the Advocate joins
with their many friends
in wishing them a long
and happy wedded
life.
Sept. 2, 1920 ar-
ticle: Roy Hanchett
and family moved into
the Ginther house one
day last week.
Left= Unsure, but
119
From a July 23, 1936 article: Albert Eckerdt motored to Devils Lake last Satur-
day evening, where he met his sister, Mrs. Roy Hanchett and son, who returned
home with him for a visit.
120
121
See page 106: Loyd 1941 same fellow, right? Same place - his grandpas garden, Sarles. See 105 bottom.
122
123
124
125
126
Polly married Roy Hanchett. Roy painted elevators in North Dakota. He told Ron
that on windy days, painting was slow, since his swing would blow out from the survace
he was painting. Roy originated from Bradford, IL.
From local paper 3-22-1917: Mr. Roy Hanchett of Thompson N. Dak. arrived here
on Monday evening and will make Sarles his home. Mr. Hanchett is a painter and decora-
tor and has had a large experience in his line of work and is a rst class worker. He has
a great deal of work before him and at present is painting the interior of the Postofce.
Anywone, wishing work done may leave orders with Erskine & Greiner.
Lydia said that Roy was married but for some reason, left his 1st wife without
notice and never returned.
Aug 30, 1922 Newspaper: Mr. and Mrs. R. L. Henchett are the proud parents
of a baby boy, born to them on Thursday, August 24th. Mother and child are reported
doing nicely.
Roy and Polly lived most of their life in and near Peoria. Roy painted most of his
life although he also drove a truck and motorcycle. He and the Knappens in the 1940s
would take trips in his 1940 Lincoln v/12 Coupe, which would cruise barely at 75 mph.
Roy sold this car for $50 in 1949.
Loyd was a painter also; died at 60 with Lung Cancer. Don lives in Las Vegas. Janice died young of cancer. Eileen lived in Peoria most of her
life; now lives in Florida near her daughter.
Lillian Bernice M. Mueller married Paul Emory in Des Moines 1-28-37 & lived in Decator for some years. He died, 6-21-63 and she married Roy Zehr
of Morton 10-5-74. Her son lives in Morristown. Yvonne lives in Morton, Carol Reffett lives in or near Bloomington. Carol was born 6-28-43 in Peoria.
Carols sons Chris, & Dales address in 01 was 311 Avenue F, Bloomington, IL 61704. He was born 10-4-1970 at Chanute, AF Base. Her son Bil Reffett
was born 11-26-74. His daughter Kayla was born 6-28-97 in Normal, IL. Peggys son Eric Sanders is married to Sandy and last known phone number
was 334-621-1803.
As you prob-
abl y r emember,
1936 broke records
for heat with the
temperatures into
the upper 90s many
days even in N.D.
Pol l y and Loyd
went to Sarles on
the train during this
time. Of course,
the windows had to
be open. The soot
out of the chimney
from the old coal
burner plentifully
entered the railroad
car and blackened
everyone. The soot
stuck quickly to sweaty bodies. By the time they reached Sarles everyone on the train was extremely black.
Many of us in generation 8 missed very much by not growing up in Sarles in the 1930s while our grandfather John was still very active. Albert
was very fortunate to have lived with his father to soak up the valuable context in which John lived.
While Loyd sat one morning, eating his breakfast next to his grandfather John, he noticed
egg yoke on Johns beard. As a 6-year-old would do, Loyd stared at this spectacle. Finally,
John said: Looks like chicken shit, doesnt it! This startled Loyd greatly. He had never heard
such language! Born 6-29-1918 in Moline.
127
L
I
N
D
A
Aug. 14, 1919 .Local News:
Miss Linda Eckerdt arrived
home Tuesday evening from Devils
Lake, on a short vacation. Her many
friends are please to see her.
From a Sarles Newspaper,
March 6th, 1930:
The editor of the Advocate
is in receipt of a subscription letter
from Mrs. McMahon - nee Miss
Linda Eckerdt, daughter of Mr. John
Eckerdt of this place. Mrs. McMahon
now lives in Baraga, Michigan and
in her letter writes as follows: We
are the proud parents of a ne baby
boy born on Jan 23rd. We now have
four children, the oldest a boy and
now the youngest a boy. We have
bought a home in the past year and are
getting along ne. Mrs. McMahon
also states that Monday is always
brightened with the old home town
paper - the Advocate.
Pics here taken at home in Baraga, Mich.
Kathleen stayed near Baraga. Buddy was Superintendent of schools in a Northern
Mich. School. Billy retired from the Navy. Barbara has lived in Arlington Hieghts for
many years. The others stayed near or in Baraga.
128
McMahon, Amanda,
ammcmaho@mtu.edu
129
130
From 1870 to 1970 the small town was the heart of America. It was where the young grew up, went to school, married, raised a family, grew old and died, all in the same community. It nour-
ished our civilization. World War II changed the small towns of America. Better automobiles and more of them and better highways and more of them, set the stage for the demise of small
towns.
Tales were still being told about the days when people came to town to pick up their mail, and buy groceries, then gather in the local cafe or bar to tell tales, exchange news, and gossip.
But like the old towns the tall tale tellers were becoming more difcult to nd. The grand old days are gone, but this book may renew a few memories as we travel the state in search of ghosts
of the past.
There was a time when residents listened closely for the locomotive whistle and waited, on the platform, to greet and meet people and to see them off. From Crosby to Cando, from Fargo
to Foxhome, from Grand Forks to Grafton, travel was by train. It was their gateway to and from the world, it was their prepaid ticket to the halls of the business world.
Life in the early villages centered around the railroad station. Things happened there. People came and left daily, and late news ashes were heard over the railroad telegraph. Newspapers,
in most issues, carried a daily column advising that Mr. Jones or Miss Smith departed on No. 31. People didnt much care for fancy train names, they simply referred to them by number. The
local railroad agent was the hero of the day, selling tickets, sorting freight and reading the telegraph. He was proudly known as Mr. Railroad.
131
From Dickinson-A Russian resident, unable to otherwise express her
resentment, used a rolling pin upon the health ofcer who was tacking a
quarantine sign upon her home. (from a C-1921 N.D. newspaper)
Ghost towns are usually associated with Old West towns abandoned
when the mines played out. But there are ghost towns in many other places.
More than 150 are found in North Dakota. Many people can tell stories of
when these towns were booming.
A ghost town is dened as having 50 people or less. It is a shadow
of its former self, for whatever reason, a community that is no long able to
support itself. All essential former activity has died or ceased, and those
who remain must look to the county, the state or other communities to
provide basic services, such as street maintenance, schools, re and police
protection. It is a town that has run its course of existence. The purpose
for which it was founded has come to an end.
Linda Eckerdt and Frank McMahon Chart#5
2) Francis b.1923 (Bud) & Jeanne Fugere b.1926 m.1947
10) Lynn b. 1950 md. Jim____________?d.1999
36) Stephen
37) Eric
11) Loma b.1950
12) Patrick b.1954
13) Laura b.1959
3) Barbara b.1924 & John(Doug) Andersen m.1951
14) James b.52 & Joan Hermann b.58 m.1977
38) Nathan b.93
39) Eric b.1987
40) Timothy b.1985
41) Stephen b.1984-84
42) Bradley b.1984
15) Majorie b.1954 & Kevin Shields m.1982
43) Darrel b.1984
16) Jeanne b.1955 & Daniel Messick divorced
44) Christina b.1989
17) Thomas b.1957 & Susan Powell b.1960 adopted children
45) Kaitlyn b.1987
46) Melissa b.1987
47) Tianna b.1991
48) Max b.1992
49) Deonte b.1993
50) Sam b.1996
18) Michael b.1959 & Susan Kahle b.1958 m.1986
51) John Michael b.1989
52) Kahlee b.1992
19) Kathleen b.1964 & David Gabriel b.1959
53) Emily b.1994
54) Sam b.1997
55) Jack b.1998
4) Kathleen b.1925 & Raymond McDonald b.aprx 1921 m.1946
20) Raymond Jr. & Margaret (2 girls, 1 boy from her 1st marriage)
56)
57)
58)
21) Mary Ann & Ray Scott/M
59) Raymond
60) Tammy
22) Barbara & Howie /M (2 girls, 1 boy)
61)
62)
63)
23) Michael & Allison /M (3 boys)
64)
65)
66)
24) Rose & George /M (3 boys)
67)
68)
69)
25) Paul & Sue /M (2 girls)
70)
71)
26) Jeanne & John Krank /M
27) Linda (Divorced) 2 girls
5) Ruth b.1926 26
6) John b.1930 (Pot. Jack) & Stina Adams b.1924
28) Kent (Appx) b.1956 from Stinas 1st marriage)
7)James (died@49?) & Annette /M
29) Jim
30) Carl
31) DD
32) Amy
33) JJ
8) William b.1937 (Bill) & Marilyn Reight 1944 /M?

132
133
Nov. 25, 1920 article: On Friday, November 19 the Sophmore class gave a
program. Earl Higgins, Edmund Rosenberger and Alex Heldt recited. The class
sang Defending America. Lydia Eckerdt and Jonnie McMaster sang a duet.
Thi s pro-
gram given at the gymnasium on Memorial Day. Owing to
the inclement weather the entire program for the day could not
be carried out.
Address-Origin of Memorial Day by H.A. Sneesby.
Vocal Trio-Sunset Hour by Stella Melville, Lydia Eckerdt and
Mabel Olson, accompanied by Miss Wanless at the piano.
Likely during a visit to Sarles by Lydia and son 1930.
134
After a few years in Chicago and Minneapolis
following marriage, her and Richard Knappen
spent until 1942 in Peoria, then until about 1983
in Morton. From about 1987 until her death she
lived in Galesville, WI.
Mr. and Mrs. Dick Knappen and two sons of Peoria,
Ill., arrived in Sarles last Saturday to visit Mrs. Knappens
father, John Eckerdt. Mrs. Knappens maiden name was Lydia Eckerdt.
Mr. and Mrs. Dick Knappen and sons, Wayne and Ronnie of Peoria, Ill., arrived here last Saturday
evening for a weeks visit with Mr. and Mrs. John Eckerdtand Mr. and Mrs. Albert Eckerdt, Mrs. Knappens
maiden name was Lydia Eckerdt.
135
Wayne was born 12-15-1927 in Chicago & died in 1-30-1980. He lived in California for a number of years. He had stepchildren. One is Carol
who lives in Southern, Ill. Another is Mike (CA).
Ron was born in 1935 & lives in 2004 near Galesville, WI.
In an article dated Aug. 14, 1941: Mr. and Mrs. Dick Knappen and sons were dinner guests as Mrs. Martha Haugens farm home on Monday
evening.
From July 10
paper 1952.
136
137
ALBERT B. 1913
Albert began working for Jim McLean at
age 12. Later he and his father decided to purchase a blacksmith business from Hiram Steppe. Albert attended
school in Fargo to learn welding. The business remained on the Eckerdt family property until Albert relocated
downtown, on the corner next to the Erskine Cafe. Al married Efe Janzen (1931 SHS graduate) in 1936, and
daughter, Barbara (1960 SHS graduate) was born in 1942. John died in 1945. Al and Efe remained very ac-
tive in the Sarles community until moving to Devils Lake in
1966 to work at the newly built college there.
Al & Pride
a b o u t
1928
This could
be his 6th,
7th or 8th
grade.
Kids: Stand-
ing, Frances
T h i e s e n ,
Helen Rob-
inson, Ma-
rie Oakland,
E l e a n o r e
Heldt, Helen
Barnstuble,
O v i d i a
Barstad, Mr.
Tr e h o u s e
(teacher) and
visitor Jackie Zeipen.
Leta Brotherton, Ada
Stevens, Marcella Gray,
Maude Troyer, Beth Chap-
man, Florence Cilly.
Kneeling: Harold Dicker-
son, Charlie Kays, Francis
Winchell, Mack George,
Bud Marlette, Leonard
Johnston, Alvin Amble,
Al Eckerdt, Joey Broth-
erton.
1936 article: Albert Eck-
erdt and Johnnie Anker-
strom returned last Friday
evening from a motor trip
to Chicago and Peoria, Ill.,
and Barago, Mich. The boys were gone a month and had a very enjoyable trip.
They experienced no car trouble with the exception of one at tire. In Chicago
they visited Mr. & Mrs. Clarence Fleming. At Peoria, Ill, they spent a short
time with Mr. & Mrs. Hanchett. Their trip further east took them to Barago,
MI where they visited Mrs. Linda McMahon and family.
Jan. 9, 1913 article: Born to Mr. and
Mrs. Eckerdt on Wednesday, Jan. 8th, and
eight pound boy. Mother and child are
reported getting along nicely.
Feb. 17, 1913 article: Mr. George
McLean gave a dinner party at his home
on Sunday. Those present were Mr. and
Mrs. Paul Higgins; Mr. and Mrs. R. E.
Stepp; Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Barker; Mr and
Mrs. John Eckherdt and Dr. Erskice.
138
Mr. John Janzen and son, Leslie of Lakota spent
Sunday at the Albert Eckerdt home.
Left: Al
and Efes
brother Les
Janzen
See Albert also with Eckerdt cousins on page
139
1941? On Saturday afternoon Mrs. Albert Eckerdt was
pleasantly surprised by a group of ladies, the occasion being
her birthday. The self invited guests served a delicious lun-
cheon and Mrs. Eckerdt received a number of ne gifts.
Barbara married Charles Horner
(1960 SHS graduate) in 1966,
they moved to Arizona and
raised two sons. Al and Efe
moved to Arizona in 1968. Al
died in 1997 and Effie cur-
rently resides with Barbara and
Charles.
July 2, 2005 Barbara, Charles, Efe
at Sarles Centenial w/ Legion Hall
in background.
A MOTHERS QUEST FOR A BETTER LIFE by
Harold D. Kauffman. 1900 South Russia. In the east the
lonely steeple of a village church appeared on the horizon,
the only indication of human presence except for her
lonely sled, a small black spot in the vast, white, endless
steppes. Occasionally she glanced to the west across the
unbroken snow to see how far the wan winter sun had sunk
and subconsciously computed how long the fading winter
twilight would enable the villagers to nd her.
The shadowy forms of the wolves had now moved
so close that she could see the fog of their breath as they
circled endlessly, drawing nearer with each orbit.
A child of the steppes, Maria Dorothea had never
feared the wolves before. But today, there was no solid wall
around her, no glowing ova to warm her. Without thought,
she reached out and touched the gure beside her. Almost
apologetically she reached under the sheepskins and pulled
out one of the camels-hair blankets and tucked it around
her own legs and feet, numb from the penetrating cold.
Looking toward the steeple, she was sure that she
could see movement near its base, in the same area that
she had last been aware of Davids horse, knowing it was
there, rather than seeing it. Straining to be sure that her
eyes were not deceiving her, she thought back across that brief, Russian winter day,
one that seemed to have started in a far-distant time.
Martin, her husband, had been sick for days with a poison blister that had ap-
peared suddenly upon his forehead. Relying upon the lore of her people, she had made
a compress of tobacco leaves soaked in hot water and applied it for hours. Nothing
seemed to help. The blister seemed to grow and to become more angry.
Yesterday, when spots appeared on the skin around it, Marias mother-in-law
had quietly assured her that nothing more could be done. He would die. Unable to
accept this judgment, she had hurried to Martins cousin and enlisted his son, David,
to help her get her husband to the doctor, 80 miles away.
This morning her children and Elizabeth, her mother-in-law, had helped them
dress Martin in his woolen garments, felt boots and sheepskins. As they settled into
the sled, Elizabeth had even brought, some of her prized camels-hair blankets to help
keep them warm. Not long after leaving the village, Martin had lost consciousness,
and by noon she realized that there was no longer any purpose in their journey.
She had reached out, touched Davids arm, and asked him to turn the horse and
take them home. That return trip had seemed even longer than the morning journey.
It was as if they had stood still in spite of the horses obvious exertion.
At last, the horse had slowed and nally stopped in a snowdrift over which it
could no longer pull the weight of the sled. David noticed the steeple on the horizon
and asked her to take the horse and to ride for help. When she refused, saying that
he, the stronger, should go, he had offered to let her ride while he walked beside
the horse. Realizing that this would likely result in their dying on the steppe, she
had refused. She would remain with her husbands body until David returned with
help. Should it be necessary, she would stand so that they could nd her. If not, at
least David might survive.
Startled, she suddenly struggled from her reverie. The sun was lower, the
shadow cast by her sled seemed to come from a clump of trees. The wolves had
come closer; she was sure that she heard their panting. To the east the movement had
materialized into gures, a group of riders threshing through the snow. Resolutely
she arose. Standing barely 5 feet tall, she held the blanket at arms length to make
as big an image as she could.
Maria Dorothea! Maria Dorothea! She recognized Davids call, but she
was too numb to respond. Surrounded by the men of the village, she recognized the
Mennonite dialect and realized that they had been nearly home. The only Mennonite
village along their route was Blumental, a village close by her own.
Not Finished!
Jacob claimed to have four brothers. We only know of three. One was Conrad
who visited in N.D.
During the horric Stalin famines of
the 1920s, John Eckerdt sent lard to Conrad
in an effort to keep him alive. I believe
one of my second cousins mentioned this
also. Then came a time when there was no
word from Conrad. The Russians denied
additional contact with U.S. relatives. U.S.
Germans later discovered that the Russians
were intercepting mailings and shipments
from the U.S. which were intended to aid
failing relatives. This occurred with every German family wanting to help their
relatives in Russia.
The events which occurred during and following the Revolution were gruesome.
In rural America, it is not uncommon during travel to encounter dead animals. In
Russia, it was not uncommon to encounter dead humans while on a stroll.
Our Eckerdts and Schutzs had uncles, aunts, brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces,
and cousins who suffered incredibly. Contact with them and their offsprings are for
the most part, lost. There were many Eckerdt relatives. Only an imagination can
guess that some may be living contentedly in Siberia.
In 1999, we discovered Eduard Eckerdt and family living in Germany since
1996. His father was amongst many who died in Siberia during the 40s. His mother
and aunt are of the Huck Beckers who also live near him in Germany. One brother
chose to remain in Kazakhstan. (many do prefer their life in Russia)
I have numerous accounts from articles about horrible experiences written by
survivors of Germans in Russia.
I will mention some of these here before furthering our U.S. Eckerdts.
Listed here are a few of the articles about suffering of our cousins, uncles and
aunts and some comments regarding them.
From The Days of Suffering by The German Volga Colonies by Bier and
Schick.
AHSGR Journal Spring 1993 The Miracle of Yurga mostly about the 1941
exiles.
In 1991, Ron wrote a summary from an article which described how it was
140
MEANWHILE, BACK IN RUSSIA
141
In Kazakhstan where in the
early 1990s about 1 million eth-
nic Germans lived, by late 1998;
250,000 remained (about a 75%
decrease). In Uzbekistan, the
German population dropped from
101,000 to around 10,000. Most
have gone to Germany.
Fr om 1950 t o 1999;
1,885,333 Germans emigrated
from regions of the former USSR
to Germany.
for descendants of Odessa-area Germany to return and travel into
their ancestral villages.
The Fall 1994 AHSGR Journal on page 30 contained an ar-
ticle from a convention speech with a good survey of our cousins
hardships.
The winter 1991 Journal contained an excellent analogy of the
role of Germans in Russia from 1862 to 1990.
The 3/24 Western Electric News Magazine carried an article
Russian General now Hawthornite telling of his experience in
the red army.
In Winter 1992 page 8 AHSGR Journal - article Uncle
Jacobs Wild Rides about bitter experiences during the revolu-
tionary years.
The May 1921 Western Electric News page 7 through page 11
carried and article Russia - The Horrible Example.
The Fall 1995 AHSGR Journal published an article Castrophic
Episode which described events from 1923 - 1927 and on.
In 1941, Treatment of Kuban area Germans was as brutal as
anywhere. An AHSGR Journal, Spring 1993 gave example using a
small cluster of villages just east of Krosnodar. The experience is
told by Dietrich Rempel from Engenheim. Soldier guards appeared
everywhere prior to their being designated war criminals and be-
ing deported on 10/9/41. Transportation was furnished in less than
humane conditions to unheated quarters where many suffered and
died after nearly two months of travel.
After our Eckerdts and Schutz came (1892-1904) there were
numerous changes in Russia, they were marked by the following
titles:
1] The Revolution of 1905
2] World War I
3] The Revolution of 1917
4] The Civil War
5] WWII
1991
Our relatives who left Russia before 1915 were spared the
following:
Two severe famines; deportation, evacuated via unheated cattle cars to
Siberian work or labor camps; separation within families; prevented from
writing to relatives abroad; repression; prison; beatings; tortures; freezing;
starvation; disease; subjects of invasions by Red and White; counter-revo-
lutionary; Soviet & Hitlers armys.
142
It is impossible to measure the suffering, the sorrow, and the grief of such
destiny. No, people cant comprehend it. Time alone will judge it all, and
then on its own merits.
Finally in 1948, things began to ease slightly & in 1990 were faced
with displacemental society problems whereever they go: Southern Re-
publics want other-than natives out, Russians
still carry the hatred from 1915 & West Germans
make fun of them because of their foreign speech
& mannerisms.
Envy & jealousy towards German settlers
brought drive for Russication & leading to emi-
gration. Envy grew to hatred by WWI.
Germans in Russia after 1914 (summary):
1915 Thousands of Volhinians were deported from
their homes to Volga, Zapory & many to Siberia.
Many never returned home.
1919-1925 bad famine.
l919-1930s Kulaks removed to killings and depor-
tations. Red & white armies fought on Germans
property; counter revolts resulted in many deaths.
1929-1940 Famine was worse than the 20s. Were forced to stop writing to
relatives outside of Russia.
1937 Massive repression resulting in prison, beating, torture & death.
1939 Division of Eastern Europe= 90,000 Bessarabians, Baltics, Dobrujan,
Galacia & Polish Germans were relocated in German Territory now Poland
& granted citizenship. The majority ended up in West Germany by the end
of the WWII.
1941 October -All volga Germans evacuated -also from Ural Mountains,
Crimeria, Caucasia, -Don Basin, & Black Sea Germans East of the Dneper
River. All lost rights as soviet citizens.
1942 Jan: Above families separated by workcamp where thousands died
of freezing, starvation & disease. As the German army lost ground, Rus-
sian Germans ed their temporary Polish homes but still were overrun
on the trains by Soviets, some managed to escape to Germany & some to
American occupied areas until the U.S. pulled out leaving these people
still to Soviet occupation.
1945 Feb: Churchill, Stalin & Roosevelt signed the Yalta Pact to return
people to where they were born if born prior to 1939 (in Russia). 250,000
Germans fell into that category and altho led to believe otherwise, they
were convicted as traitors & shipped in cattle cars to Northern & Siberian
labor camps.
1948 Allowed family reunication.
1956 Allowed them to move anywhere in USSR, seek missing family
members, correspond abroad & take part in military draft. At this time,
many moved South to Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tadzhikistan
and Kirgizia still unable to leave USSR.
1964 Decree establishing innocence of Germans who had been banished
in 1941.
1975 Helsinki Accord allowed 63,000 to reunite with families in West
Germany during 1975-1980. By 1990 over 98,000 had arrived in Germany.
By June 1990 55,000 had arrived in Germany during 1990 with expectancy
of 100 to 120,000.
Following are sketches and descriptions of these events:
In Search of a New Homeland Survey 1918-1945
From 1918 to 1945 the German-Russians endured severe hardships: the famine
years of 1922/23 and 1932/33, banishment in the years from 1928 to 1940, expro-
priation of their property and the introduction of the kolkhoz system, total expulsion
from the Volga, the Crimea and the Caucasus in 1941 to Northern and central Asia,
deportation of the remaining Germans during the retreat of the Soviet armies. Only
some 350,000 found a temporary refuge in the Warthegau and in Germany, during
the retreat of the German troops. About 250,000 of these refugees were compelled
by the invading Soviet troops to go back to the Soviet Union, not into their former
settlements but to their fellow countrymen who had previously been banished to the
northern SSR of Komi, to central Asia beyond the Urals, and to the Altai region. Most
of them were banished from 10 to 25 years, and were not permitted to leave their
place of exile. The heavy unaccustomed labor in the primeval forests and the mines,
the wretched living quarters, the scarcity of food. In 1947 a severe famine again
raged-exacted a large toll of victims among the Germans, as well as among other
nationalities. Not until 1955, after the general amnesty, were these conditions allevi-
ated. The living conditions improved; there was greater freedom of movement. Soon
there was a migratory movement from the cold North (Komi) to the warm South of
central Asia. Most of the deportees settled in the SSR of Kasachstan, where Germans
had previously been forced to settle in the newly opened areas. Some were settled in
the closed German villages that had already been established at the beginning of the
century, chiey in the Altai region near Semipalatinsk and in the Kulunda steppe near
Slavgorod. A larger group of German-Russians came into completely new regions
of the SSR of Tadschik-istan, Usbekistan, and Kirgisia, where they are engaged not
only in agriculture, cotton growing, raising of cattle and sheep, but also in industry
and construction. Even though the Germans are no longer able to have their own
villages, there were still some communities in which they constitute a high percent-
age or even a majority of the population. However, most of them live in dispersion
among foreign nationalities. Here and there in the cities, one nds certain streets
in which several German families live next to one another. As a traveller reports,
such German homes are generally recognized by the style of the building and the
ower garden in front of it. A very large number of Germans are living in the cities
of Karaganda (pop. 100,000), Alma-Ata (pop. 10,000) and in Duschanbe. But a large
number live completely separated from their ethnic group, in an alien environment
extending to the farthest North and East near Kamtschatka in Siberia.
Survey 1914-2001:
According to the 1926 Soviet census, the number of Germans in the North
Caucasus was 93,915. Before 1914, the estimated number of Germans was more
than 100,000.
KUBAN DISTRICT: Number of villages, 17. Number of resident, 7,974.
Land owned [desjatines] 17,430.
After 1914: When World War I started, many as in all other ethnic group Rus-
sian-Germans served in the Russian military. The majority labored in work brigades
building necessary railroads and forts, or were called to do work in forests. Public use
of the German language as forbidden. Their land and property was to be liquidated.
They were threatened with expropriation and deportation. The February revolution,
to be sure, brought them an temporary and denite freedom; however, the October
revolution brought loss of freedom, suppression, expropriation, and persecution. No
Russian-German group had to suffer from the attacks of a foreign populace as did the
North Caucasus Germans. The robbery-prone Tatars, Nogai, Kumeks, Tschstschens,
and others went from village to village committing numerous acts of thievery like
taking horses, cows, cattle, machinery, money, and household goods.
1921
The economic prosperity of the colonies provided an income for German ag-
riculturists, who were permitted to go to the colonies in an ofcial capacity. When
WWI broke out they were hauled to Siberia as civilian prisoners. The farmers in
the colonies had obtained all their necessary agricultural equipment, such as plows,
harrows, sowing and harvesting machines, and horse-drawn rakes almost exclu-
sively from the engineering works of Eckert and Sack in Berlin, and the threshing
machines from the Heinrich Lanz factory in Mannheim. Diesel motors were also
imported from Germany.
Already during World War I the governments Requisition Commission took
the best horses, wagons, and cows on the road of no return. And after the war the
many armed insurgents and roving bandits took everything worthwhile from them.
The wealthiest men of the community often simply were locked up in the chancery
and threatened with execution by shooting unless relatives in short time would provide
a large ransom. So it was that the colony live deteriorated and came to ruin, and
many of the brave settlers were shot [murdered] or deported to Siberia.
1915
Aussiedler=Aus=out; Siedeln=t settle; people who settle outside the boundaries
of their homeland; emigrants from land of their birth outside of Germany - mainly
Russia mostly to West Germany; late returnees; returnees; Landsleute (our relatives
who remained in Russia when our ancestors came to this continent.
Envy towards German settlers in Russia brought about a drive for Russica-
tion which lead to emigration from Russia to Americas. This envy grew and grew
developing into a hatred of the German colonists by WWI. Czar Nickolas II drew
TROUBLE!
1914-1918- WWIs outbreak, 1.7 million Germans living in Russia de-
clared internal enemies of empire; during war, 300,000 Germans serve
in tsars army.
The fate of our Neuheim after 1914 is described herein as 99% of the Russian
German village offered similar fates.
2 Feb./13 Dec. 1915-Liquidation Law enacted for German-owned land
in area within 150 km of empires western borders; forced mass deportation
50,000 Volhynian Germans. - some going to the Volga, some to Zaporozhye
and many to Siberia. Many newer returned home.
27 May 1915-Pogrom against ethnic Germans in Moscow, many German
shops looted, 40 Germans wounded, 3 murdered.
1915-1917- Under last
tsar, Nicholas II (1894-
1917), 60,000 Russian
Germans die.
Feb. 1917 -Revolution;
Nicholas II forced to
abdicate.
Amer i ca j oi ned
the campaign against
Germany WWI in April,
1917, and one of the rst
casualties of the war was
tolerance at home. A
wave of anti-Germanism,
a veritable furor ameri-
canus directe against all
things German swept the
land; German music and
literature, German church
services, the German lan-
guage, the activities of all
German societies and ev-
erything remotely associ-
ated with a German origin
came under the ban of the
super-patriots...German
place, street and family
names were americanized
and anglicized; German
dishes vanished from hotel menus. This
national histeria was fully echoed in
North Dakota.
The famines of the 1930s was even
worse since it covered a greater area.
Those who recieved money or packages
from North America were subject to ha-
rassment, beatings, arrest and even death.
During the 1930s they were forced to stop
writing letters to relatives in North Amer-
ica. One man told Jo Ann Kuhr that they
were forced
to write them
that they did
not need or
want t hei r
capitalistic
help and they
shoul d not
write us any-
more. But
that was a lie;
we had to say it to save our lives.
This time the people could not receive help from
abroad. Those who did receive money or packages from
North America were subject to harassment, beatings,
arrest, even death. During the 1930s relatives in Russia
were forced to stop writing their relatives in America
or Canada. But - believe me - they did not forge their
relatives who had helped them. One man has written
our ofce, We have to nd our relatives and thank them
for their help. In the 1930s we were forced write them
that we did not need or want their capitalistic help and
they should not write us anymore. But this was a lie. We
had to say that in order to save our own lives. While in
Germany I also spoke to a number of people who want
to nd their relatives so they can thank them for their
assistance and for saving their lives during those two great famines.
The Germans (and other ethnic groups) suffered greatly under the collectiv-
ization of all farmland and the dekulakization policies of Stalin. Many Aussiedler
relate now their fathers or grandfathers were taken away in the middle of the night.
The families of the arrested kulaks were evicted from their homes and allowed to
take nothing with them other than the clothes on their baks. Other mermbers of the
family or other people in the village were forbidden to help those who were thus
branded the enemies of the people. hey wandered from village to village, begging
for food. Some of the families were eventually able to join their husbands and fathers
in exile in Siberia and Kazakhstan.
17 May 1917 -In Slavgorod, 1,500 representatives of the. Germans of
Siberia assemble.
1917-1924- Bolshevik leader Vladimir I. Lenin seizes power in Russia
father of the Soviet totalitarian state, during his last 2 years health dimin-
ishes his ruling effectiveness; Joseph Stalin serves as Soviet Nationalities
Commissar.
During the Russian civil war 1918-1919 these communities were strongly
menaced by the Tartars. These Tartars wanted to forcibly remove these Germans
settlers, who they referred to as troublesome intruders. The communities could
hardly repel the heavily-armed Tartar hordes. Plundering and murder were the order
[common occurrence] of the day. Nobody took more risk, without the benet of
armed support than these communities did for their villages. The men had to stand
watch day and night so as not to be suprised and overcome by the plundering hordes.
When nally the Tatars brought cannons to the vicinity of the villages, dragged there
with buffaloes, the colonists abandon the villages and ed to the authorities in Grosni
and Kisljar for protection. But the situation of the Russian authorities there, too, was
doubtful at this time so they counseled the Germans to hastily leave their vilalges,
and gave them a small military escort. With the protection of the escort, most of
the settlers were able to retrieve something from the villages they had abandoned,
but they could get a very minimum of what they owned.
1918-1925 -Result from Russian Civil War and forced grain requisitions by
143
Bolsheviks, 300,000 Germans perish; famines in German villages continue
some areas til 1925.
Home guard resulted in bloody encounters. On February 2, 1918, Nogai and
Taulins robbed Mudeburg, Ostheim, and Taranowka of virtually everything. The
attacks were so frequent that some of the German villages were abandoned. Those
abandoning their villages ed to other German villages in the Terek and Kuban
districts where they were received in a friendly manner. Great suffering during the
Revolution as Red and White Armies waged battles on the land and villages of Ger-
man Colonists. Both armies took whatever they wanted from the land and people
often leaving them with no food or even seed grain. Counter-revolutionary activities
especially in the Volga Region brought brutal retaliation and loss of many lives.
24 Apr. 1918 -Founding of German Section of Communist Party (Bolshe-
viks); in Volga-German autonomous republic during 1920s - 1930s, Volga
Germans remain under-represented in Communist Party.
In the May 1918 Western Electric News was a 5 page article Trying to Un-
derstand Revolutionary Russia. Ron had this in 2003.
1920
The Last Stand
C. E. Smith, Kearny Installation, Gives an Eye Witness Account of a Rus-
sian Generals Last Battle in the Red and White War
The importance of the battle of Novorossiysk according to Russian authorities in
this country, is minor, but it will be remembered chiey because it was the last engage-
ment of the already
defeated General
Anton Denikin, of
the White Army.
Smiths account is
the rst of the battle
to appear in a pub-
lication in this
country.
S m i t h
was an electri-
cian in charge
of main decks
a boa r d t he
Galveston, a
light cruiser,
doing despatch
dut y i n t he
Black Sea. In
March, 1920,
t he shi p re-
ceived orders
to proceed to
Novorossiysk.
O n
watch night and
day intermittently,
Smith saw the Cos-
sacks und General
Deni ki n dr i ven
over the mountains
behind Novoros-
sisyk to the very
docks of the harbor
and make their last
stand while more
than forty thousand
inhabitants evacu-
ated the town. Then under a barrage of shell re they took to waiting boats and
made their escape.
Denikins ghting was offensive and successful. Refusing to surrender - know-
ing full well that that would mean the capture and death of his own Cossacks, the
iniction of suffering on the town folk - Denikin stood guard until every woman
and child had left the shores of Novorossiysk.
Scanning the hills with the binoculars, Smith could see the Red forces gathering
by the thousands. They were dragging their artillery with horses and oxen over the
mountain roads. General Denikin and his Cossacks fought from within the town.
There were still thousands of refugees to be taken from the shores. They lined the
waters edge. They killed their horses and cattle, and burned their wagons, pushing
the remains into the water. If such possessions could not be transported also, at least
they would not fall into the hands of the Reds.
For three days this battle raged. During the daytime it was impossible to
take off any refugees. At night smaller boats, the Admirals barge and the crews
motor-sailer, from the Galveston glided into the docks without lights, to bring back
women and children to the cruiser. Some of the peasants, who had ed for miles in
the mountains before the advancing Red, were without clothing. Taken aboard the
Galveston, they were furnished with uniforms.
The last night, March 27, when the evacuation was complete, General Deniin
with his Cossacks, left the scene of their last battle and while Russian destroyers still
fought the Reds in the hills, boarded the
Emperor of India. The town of Novoros-
siysk was in ames.
Words, said Smith, cannot paint the
awful drama of the situation as he saw it.
The next morning, as the Galveston lifted
anchor, the refugees crowded the decks to
see the town, smouldering ruins.
---------------------------------------
----------
In the 1920s was a severe famine
bringing in the assistance of the Ameri-
can Relief Association. Many American
G-Rs sent money, food and clothing to
relatives. This included John Eckerdt
family sending lard and the Heldts send-
ing money. At this time, one may visit
with Aussiedlers who will tell you about
having eaten in soup kitchens which were
ARA provided.
In the starvation years 1920/1922
the harvest [yields] were quite good, but
the communists requisition commission
took virtually all the grain away from
the farmers, ostensibly to feed the Red
army. Moveover, the North Caucasus was
ooded by starving refugees from central
Russia, and innumerable refugees found refuge in German villages. So, for example,
Alexanderdorf near Nalytschi had 1600 residents in 1918 and exactly 194 in 1922.
A total of 341 refugees and starving people found lodging in that village. Under
these conditions, the people of the North Caucasus were not spared the specter of
starvation. Many were victims of the hunger typhus [disease], being infected by the
refugees from the north parts of Russia.
1921-1927- USSRs New Economic Policy (NEP) in effect; temporary
relative recovery in Russian-German settlements.
1923 -The Soviet authorities register all churches. According to the 1926 Soviet
census, the number of Germans in the North Caucasus was 93,915. Before 1914,
the estimated number of Germans was more than 100,000, and the land ownership
as being over 500,000 desjatines (more than 5000 square kilometers).
1926
The brunt of the 1918 Revolustion did not immediately affect the Rural
Caucasus and it was not until 1926 when conditions really began to deteriorate.
A movement to gradually collectivize the land and systematically dispossess the
landowners of their acreages as well as personal property, created an untenable
condition among the people who had worked long and hard to acquire their meager
holdings. To facilitate the program, the wealthier people were jailed on trumped-
up charges and sent to distant labor camps where many perished. Others, who
objected strenuously to having their property forcibily taken from them, were often
shot on the spot. Some acquiesed to the Collectivization, but in the long run fared
little better than their predecessors. A few saw the peril that would soon ocnfront
them and chose to avoid these oppressive conditions by attempting to escape from
the country. One of the more fortunate groups was led across the Caspian Sea to
Persia, to eventually be repatriated into Germany under President Von Hindenburg
and the Ev. Lutheran Church. Others who were caught in the act of leaving were
very harshly dealt with.
Those who remaind with the hope that conditions would improve, if not liqui-
144
dated, were gradually dispersed in Siberia, or Kasachstan in Asiatic Russia. Visitors
to the area during German Army Occupation of World War II reported that nearly
all buildings had been demolished with the exception of the very well built stone
houses. The land had become part of the huge Collective Complex.
Thus is the portrayal of a village that had come into existence under rather
favorable conditions and had prospered through the pioneering efforts of its settles
but through circumstances not of its making suffered an ignominious demise.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1927 Volga-German intellectual Peter Sinners Herbstgedanken (Autumn
Thoughts) is published, a poem well-known among later generations of
Russian Germans (notably emigres); it foretells his ethnic peoples, as well
as his own, ultimate demise in the emerging new socio-political order of
the USSR; even during the NEP period, several of his writings and those of
some other Russian-German writers dwell on this death theme; in the 1930s,
most Russian German ethnic elite are killed or exiled under Stalin.
1927-1953- Joseph Stalin is supreme Soviet leader.
In the years 1928 and 1935 execution of programs of exerminations of the
KULAKS and of collectivization proved to even the most opitmistic the direction
being steered by the Soviet regime - the complete elimination of the German farm-
ing system and community. Innumerable farm families were driven from house and
yard, deported to Siberia and forced into labor camps. Those left behind were forced
into collectives [KOLCHOSEN AND SOWCHOSEN], where they were poorly paid
labroers for the state. Their churches and cultural establishments were locked up and
the leaders - teacher and clergy - were banished and deported. Farsighted farmers
who had perception and foresight, recognized the potential problems on the horizon;
these took advantage of the opportunity offered by the Soviet regime in 1924/25 and
immigrated to North and South America. During this period almost 30,000 Germans,
mostly Mennonites, with permission from the Soviet regime, immigrated to countries
overseas. Among these immigrants were many North Caucasus Germans.
1928-1938 -During Stalins forced collectivization campaigns, enforced
famines, and mass political purges, around 300,000 Russian Germans
die.
Dec. 1929 -14,000 Germans and families go to receive exit permits;
Germany accepts 5,671 after long negotiations, but only for transit; from
Germany, those accepted are sent to North and South America; majority
not permitted to leave USSR, forced to return to their homes under poor
conditions.
1 July 1931 -95% of Volga-German farmers now work on kolkhozes
(cooperative farms); numerous ethnic-German churches are converted
into cultural centers.
1932-1933- The Great Soviet Famine in Ukraine and along the Volga. The
horrendous man-induced famines in the Ukraine in 1932-33 were consider-
ably muted or discounted.
1933-1945- Nazi Germany (the Third German Reich).
1937 -All German churches are desecrated.
1937 saw massive repression of the people. No family escaped; everyone had
someone who was taken away in the middle of the night to prison, beatings, torture,
death. Children included. One lady told about her sixteen-year-old brother, just
a kid working at the collective farm. One evening when the kids at the farm were
nished with their work, they were playing war games, the White Army against the
Red Army. After they were nished playing, he made the statement, If the White
Army were still here, I would ght for the White Army. Shortly thereafter he was
called to the ofce of the director of the farm and sent home. He got home just in
time for supper. He was so hungry, he said, Oh, I am going to eat my ll this time.
But he never got a chance to eat his ll. Just as he sat down at the table, there was
a knock at the door. The sixteen-year-old boy was arrested. The family never saw
him again, but they did learn that he had been beaten to death in prison.
Mar. 1938 -Russian language made compulsory in Soviet schools; Ger-
man language still legal in Volga-German ASSR until its ofcial abolition
late August 1941.
Mar. 1939 -The dissolution of German National Rayons in Ukraine.
23 Aug. 1939- In Moscow, the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact is
signed.
Sept. 1939-May 1945 -The outbreak of World War II; in Russia, it is called
the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.
Late 1939 -Nazi-Soviet agreement: most remainding Germans in indepen-
dent Baltic states repatriated to Nazi Germany before Soviet annexation
1940.
From 1939-1941 thousands of Germans from Bessarabia, the Baltic States,
Bukovina, the Dobruja, Galicia, and Polish Volhynia were relocated in German ter-
ritory, in and area that is now Poland. These people were called Vertragsumsiedler
(resettlers by contract) and were granted German citizenship. By the end of World
War II, most of them were in West Germany.
Late 1940 -Nazi-Soviet agreement: all Bessarabian Germans from 52 vil-
lages resettled by Nazis to Greater German Reich (Heim ins Reich); shortly
later, Soviets annex Bessarabia from Romania (Russia lost in 1918).
22 June-Aug. 1941 -Nazi Germany invades USSR; by July Soviet authori-
ties deport Germans from western parts of the USSR (Crimea, Caucasus,
parts of Black Sea Region) to eastern territories; most Germans west of
Dnieper River escape exile to Soviet East because Nazis quickly overtake
region.
1941-1949- During brutal Nazi-Soviet war and immediate post-war period
the forced resettlement of entire peoples to Soviet Siberia and Central Asia,
about 350,000 Russian Germans perish.
28 Aug. 1941- In response to Nazi invasion of the USSR the decree Con-
cerning the Removal of Germans Residing the Districts in Volga Region
signed.
1941. The evacuation of all Germans from the Volga Region was completed
by the end of September.
The Volga Germans were not the only ones to be deported. All Germans living
in the Crimea had been evacuated by August 17, 1941. Also evacuated and sent to
labor camps in Siberia and Asiatic areas of the U.S.S.R. were Germans in the Ural
Mountains, in the Don Basin, he Caucasus, and the Black Sea area east of the Dnieper
River. The Germans living west of the Dnieper River and in Ukrainian Volhynia
were spared this cruel fate for a time because of the rapid advance of the German
Army. Those deported lost all rights as Soviet citizens. From 1941 until 1956 a
woman was not allowed to take her husbands name when she married. Beginning
in 1942 the families were separated when both men and women were sent to the
Trudarmee, or work army. Women from sixteen to fty were sent to labor camps
to cut down trees or to the icy sheries in the north from sixteen to fty-ve were
sent to labor camps to cut down trees or to the coal mines. Very few returned from
the coal mines. They were under constant supervision by camp guards. Thousands
of them died in these labor
camps due to freezing, starvation, or disease. Children over the age of three
were left to fend for themselves if they didnt have an elderly relative or family
friend to take care of them.
Women manned a two-man saw-I guess I should say a two-woman saw-and
cut down trees in the forest of Siberia. They had a very hard life there. Maria told
me that she had been given shots to stop her periods. Anna Maria said her periods
had already stopped because she had been on a starvation diet for so long. If these
ladies met their quota of trees to cut down, they were given 750 grams of bread per
day. That was all. If they didnt meet their quota, they werent given anything at all.
Children too young to work were given 250 grams of bread. All the people I talked
to who cut down trees said, We cut down trees in snow up to here, motioning to
their chests. It didnt matter if it was a little woman or a tall woman, the snow was
always chest deep. Maria almost cried as she told of the agony she had suffered in
the bitter cold in Siberia. They would have terrible snowstorms, but they would still
have to cut down trees. They would have to break new paths in snow up to here
before they could get to the work site. By the time they would get home at night, their
clothes would be soaking wet. If someone was too sick to work, they didnt receive
any food. To be sick enough to be sent to the hospital was to be sent to die.
Have you ever cut down a tree? It isnt easy, is it, even if there are two of you.
They had to cut down fteen trees a day. They also had to cut off all the branches
and cut the trees into 6-meter lengths. Other women would sometimes cut the trees
into 3-meter lengths. Then they would load them onto railroad cars. It was very
dangerous to load the logs onto the railroad cars as the logs had to be carried up
steps which were frequently very icy due to the snow. If a woman slipped, it meant
instant death. This was not an easy life.
The Germans living in the Odessa Region who escaped this deportation had a
few years of peaceful living under German occupation. As the defeat of the German
Army became evident, these German colonists were also resettled in the Warta River
area of Posen, now Poland. These people were referred to as Administrativumsiedler
(administrative resettlers).
As the Germans continued to lose ground during the war, these administrati-
vumsiedler ed from their temporary homes in Poland. They were afraid of being
captured by the Soviet Army and shot as traitors, collaborators, or deserters, or sent to
forced-labor camps in Siberia and Asia. Some of the trains of refugees were overrun
by the Soviet forces, and their fears became reality. Others managed to escape to
Germany. Some of them were even in areas of Germany under American occupa-
tion-until they awoke one morning and found the Americans had pulled out and had
been replaced by Soviet Occupation Forces. Even those who had managed to reach
the American Occupation Zone were not yet safe from banishment to Siberia.
14 Feb. 1942 -Resolution of GKO Concerning the Mobilization of German
Men of Conscript Age 17 to 50 Years Permanently Residing in Districts,
Localities, and Autonomous and Union Republics; so-called Labor Army
(Trudarmiya) created.
19 Mar. 1943 -The Nazi Government bestows German citizenship to ethnic
Germans (Volksdeutsche).
1943-1945- With the retreating Nazi armies, 350,000 Ukrainian (Black
Sea) Germans from USSR ee to Polands Warthegau and Greater German
Reich; 275,000 are forcibly deported back to USSR as repatriated Soviet
145
citizens under Allied agreements, mostly ending up in special settlements
of Soviet Siberia & Central Asia; majority of remaining 75,000 Ukrainian
Germans stay in what will become West Germany; for four decades, the
pressing issue of family reunication becomes a point of contention between
West Germany and USSR.
In February 1945 Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt signed an agreement which
resulted in the imprisonment and death of thousands of displaced people in Germany
at the end of the war. According to the Yalta Pact, all displaced people were to be
returned to the land of their birth. The Soviets maintained that anyone born in the
area comprising the Soviet Union as of 1938 was a Soviet citizen. They demanded
that all Soviet citizens be returned to the Soviet Union. Thus the 360,000 ethnic
Germans living in South Russia at the time of the invasion of the German Army
and later resettled in Poland and Germany were still considered Soviet citizens, in
spite of their pleas that, as Administrativumsiedler, they were German citizens. At
the end of World War II, the Repatriation Commission of the Allied Forces did their
best to see that all displaced persons in Germany were sent home. The Soviet Union
promised that all could go back home, but the 250,000 ethnic Germans caught by
Operation Keelhaul. knew better.
These people have suffered a lot, but they still have a sense of humor. One
woman recently arrived in Germany told about having been sent back to Russia
although she and her family were in the American Occupation Zone. She said, Dad
came home and was so excited. He said, We are going back home. The Russians
wanted to know if we wanted to go where it was warm or where it was cold. I told
them where it was warm. But guess where they were sent.
Man, woman, and child, all the captured ethnic Germans from Russia were
convicted as traitors, gathered into unheated cattle cars, and shipped to the labor
camps of Northern Siberia, the Gulag Archipelago, or Asiatic Russia. There they
experienced the same-or worse-fate as the Germans who had been banished to those
areas in 1941.
May 1945 -Soviet Russia (the RSFSR) annexes from Germany northern
East Prussia (with Konigsberg); Konigsberg is promptly renamed Kalin-
ingrad.
1947- The forced-labor units (Trudarmiya) are formally disbanded;
however, for the next several years, the USSRs deported peoples remain
conned to remote regions under special surveillance in the so-called
special settlements.
1947-1948- In Kaliningrad, the publication of the German newspaper Neue
Zeit; with respect to the USSRs poor treatment of its many ethnic Germans
at this time, this Soviet concession is an exception to the rule; the gazette
runs until all the Germans are deported from the region.
The deportation of Germans from northern East Prussia into the Soviet
Occupation Zone of Germany (the future East-Germany).
26 Nov. 1948 -The decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the
USSR Concerning the Criminal Responsibility for Escape from the Place of
Mandatory and Permanent Settlement of Persons Evacuated to the Remote
Regions of the USSR at the time of the Patriotic War is signed; exile is in
effect forever, and a punishment of 20 years of hard labor is set for those
who attempt to leave the special settlements without special permit.
What happened to all these Germans in the deportation camps? In 1948 the
Supreme Soviet issued a decree that relaxed the supervision and allowed families
to reunite but also indicated that the deportation was permanent. The people had no
right to return to their former homes.
1949 -In the course of three and a half decades, from World War I until the
late Stalin era, the death total for Russian Germans reaches approximately
one million, most of which - resulted from unnatural deaths or excess
mortality rates.
23 May 1949 -The Federal Republic of Germany (FRO) or West Germany
is founded; Law (Constitution) guarantees citizenship to all Germans -
abroad; this policy stems from nations guilt over Nazi past and desire for
reunication of German families across Europe.
1949-1963 -Konrad Adenauer of the CDU/CSU is West Germanys rst
chancellor. Late 1940s-Early 1950s -Approximately 30,000 Russian-Ger-
man Displaced Persons (DPs) emigrate from West Germany to United
States, Canada, South America, and Australia for economic reasons and
fear of Soviets (the danger of repatriation to the East as Soviet citizens);
in United States, for example, the Displaced Persons Acts of 1948 and
1950 opened up the country to refugees who cannot return to their homes
in Communist-controlled countries of Eastern Europe; refugee families
also are sponsored to go overseas, but it remains difcult, as their sponsors
(usually relatives) have to guarantee them housing and employment. One
wonders who sponsored Vera Anapolsky.
22 Apr. 1950 -On founding of FRG, representatives of Russian Germans
and relief agencies organize associations for resettlers from the East (Os-
tumsiedler).
5 Aug. 1950- In Stuttgart, West Germany, the Charter of the Germans
Expulsed from Their Homelands (Charta der deutschen Heimatver-
triebenen) is signed.
15 Oct. 1950 -At historic Paulskirche, Frankfurt, West Germany, the Arbe-
itsgemeinschaft der Ostumsiedler (Work Group of Resettlers from East) is
established at assembly of federal delegates; here, the delegates demand that
West German government attempt to secure release of Germans detained
in Soviet labor camps; later, this organization is renamed Landsmannschaft
der Deutschen aus RuBland (National Association of Germans from Rus-
sia), based in Stuttgart.
1953-1964 -Nikita Khrushchev is Soviet leader.
1954 -The Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Ostumsiedler begins publishing regular
editions of the Russian-German Heimatbucher (Books on the Homeland),
which continues into the 2000s.
1955 -In Stuttgart, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Ostumsiedler changes name
to Landsmannschaft der Deutschen aus RuBland (National Association of
Germans from Russia).
22 Feb. 1955- West German Bundestag accepts decision to recognize va-
lidity of citizenship (naturalization) for Russian Germans, primarily from
western Ukraine, who had obtained it during World War II.
1 Dec. 1955- In Barnaul, in Russias Altai Region, the rst German newspa-
per Arbeit (Labor) published inside - USSR since war; it runs until 1957.
In 1955 Konrad Adenauer, Chancellor of Germany, visited the Soviet Union.
To press for the release of German prisoners of war still in Soviet prison camps, he
also called for the return of German citizens held in prison camps; and he asked for
improvements in the living conditions of the Soviet Germans. As a result, a partial
amnesty and greater freedoms were granted in a decree of December 1955.
13 Dec. 1955- Decree (war amnesty) of Presidium of Supreme Soviet of
USSR Concerning Removal of Restrictions in Legal Status from Germans
found in Special Settlement is signed; however, there is no return of prop-
erty conscated during deportation and exile, nor are Germans allowed to
return to old homelands and native villages.
As of 1956 the Sonderkommandatur (special administration) was lifted, and
Soviet Germans were given personal identication papers which allowed them to
move outside the limited areas to which they had been re-stricted since 1941. They
could seek their missing family members and resume correspondence with rela-
tives abroad. Equal rights meant that once again German youth were conscripted
for military service. They could change their residence and their job, but they could
not go home!
24-25 Feb. 1956 -At Twentieth Party Congress, Khrushchev gives Se-
cret Speech, in which he - condemns Stalin personally for past political
crimes.
1957 -In the USSR, the rst German-language radio transmission is per-
mitted.
1 May 1957- The central newspaper Neues Leben (New Life) begins
publication; many Russian Germans consider it successor to the Deustcke
Zentral-Zeitung (DZZ), which ran in Moscow from 1926 to 1938.
15 June 1957 -In Slavgorod, Russia, the newspaper Rote Fahne (Red
Banner) is started up for ethnic Germans; in 1991, it is renamed Zeitung
fur Dich.
29 Aug. 1964 -Decree of Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of USSR
Concerning the USSR from 28 August 1941 Concerning the Removal of
Germans Residing in Volga Region is signed; this partial rehabilitation
policy does not allow the Germans to return to their old homelands, nor
re-establishment of a Volga-German republic; the decree is not publicized
to general populace for next twenty-ve years.
1964-1982- Leonid Brezhnev is Soviet leader.
1965-1985- About 12,000 Russian Germans are allowed to emigrate to
Communist East Germany (the German Democratic Republic).
1 Jan. 1966 -In Kazakhstan, the newspaper Freundschaft (Friendship)
begins publication; in 1991, it becomes Deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung.
1968 -In North America, founding of American Historical Society of
Germans from Russia (AHSGR), becoming one of the major archival
collections on Russian Germans; the Landsmannschaft der Deutschen aus
RuBland cooperates with the AHSGR; by early 1990s, AHSGR establishes
numerous links with former USSRs Russian Germans and growing emigre
community in Germany.
1970-1975 -About 30,000-35,000 Russian Germans leave their places of
residence in Kazakhstan and Siberia for Moldavia, Estonia and North Cau-
casus in hope of soon receiving permission to emigrate to West Germany
to reunite with relatives, freedom.
9 Jan. 1971 -Bismarck, ND: the founding of North Dakota Historical Soci-
146
147
ety of Germans from Russia (NDHS-GR); on 14 July 1979, members vote
to change its name to Germans from Russia Heritage Society (GRHS); the
Landsmannschaft der Deutschen aus RuBland cooperates with the GRHS;
by early 1990s, the GRAS establishes links with former USSRs Russian
Germans and growing migr community in Germany.
1972 -In USSR, Association of Germans Wishing to Emigrate (Vereini-
gung der auswanderungswilligen Deutschen) illegally formed; this dissident
network based in Estonia with contacts in Lithuania, Moldavia, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan and elsewhere.
23 Apr. 1972 -At Moscows Main Telegraph Ofce, a sit-down strike of
thirty Russian Germans wishing to emigrate.
June 1972 -Group of twelve Russian Germans want to present to Chair-
man of Presidium of Podgorny, their demands for permission to emigrate
to Germany; however, this delegation is only permitted to meet with desk
clerk of Presidium of Supreme Soviet.
16 May 1973- Sit-down strike of Germans, at Moscows Intourist-Hotel.
18 May 1973 -A twelve-member delegation of Russia Germans deliv-
ers to Supreme Soviet of USSR a memorandum on condition of German
people in USSR, an appeal to UN General Secretary Kurt Waldheim, and
signatures of 7,000 German families (about 35,000 persons) wishing to
emigrate from the USSR.
30 Sept. 1973 -In Karaganda, a controversy occurs between Germans wish-
ing to emigrate and Kazakh ofcials; according to eyewitnesses, over 400
soldiers and 500 militia called to disperse 400 Germans holding a rally.
1 Feb. 1974- As a protest, Ljudmila Oldenburger and her two sons chain
Themselves in front of the building of the Central Committee of the Com-
munist Party of the USSR in order to carry through their immigration to
Germany.
30 July-1 Aug. 1975 -USSR promises to respect citizens human rights,
freedom of travel, freedom of belief.
8 Mar. 1977 -Ten former German residents of the Volga Region are arrested
for protesting in Red Square and demanding emigration rights.
July 1978 -Germans from Russia Heritage Society (GRHS) creates Germans
from Russia Heritage Collection (GRHC) at Institute for Regional Studies,
North Dakota State University Libraries, Fargo; one of the major
archival collections on the Russian Germans; the Landsmannschaft der
Deutschen aus RuBland cooperates with NDSU Libraries; by early 1990s,
special collection at NDSU Libraries establishes extensive links (particu-
larly through electronic information sources) with former USSRs Germans
and growing emigre community in Germany.
16-19 June 1979 -In Tselingograd and other cities in Kazakhstan, a demon-
stration of 5,000 Kazakh students against Moscows intended establishment
of an ethnic-German autonomous region near Ermentau (120 km north of
Tselingograd) demonstration is organized by Kazakh professors with ap-
proval of ofcials under motto Kazakhstan for Kazakhs and Kazakhstan
is indivisible; a large outbreak of public violence by agitated Kazakh
youth is barely avoided.
31 Mar. 1980- A group of Russian Germans demonstrates in Moscows
Red Square for the right to immigrate to West Germany.
1981 -In Moscow, the Soviet-German (Communist) almanac Heimatliche
Weisen (Rodinye Prostory/Native Expanses) begins publication.
Nov. 1982 -An airplane highjacking to Turkey as part of the struggle by
Russian Germans in dissident emigration movement to get permission to
leave USSR.
1982-1984 -Yuri Andropov is Soviet leader.
1984-1985- Constantine Chernenko is Soviet leader.
1985-1991- Mikhail Gorbachev is Soviet leader; he launches the reform-era
of glasnost and perestroika (the so-called second NEP). After Gorbachebs
rise to power in 1985, and Glasnost had a tremendous effect on the number of Ger-
mans who were allowed to emigrate.
25 Sept. 1985 -Soviet press agency Novosti publishes in Bonn a German-
language article on situation of Russian Germans with title The Soviet
Germans: Past and Present for UNESCO meeting on human rights held
in Budapest, Hungary.
19-21 Nov. 1985 -During Geneva Summit between the two world super-
powers, U.S. President Ronald Reagan, at the request of Chancellor Kohl,
speaks with General Secretary of USSR Gorbachev about forced resettle-
ment of Germans in USSR.
1 Jan. 1987- Soviet emigration reform legislation goes into effect for
rehabilitation of separated family relations; begins noticeable increase
in number of ethnic-German emigrants to (West) Germany, in 1987, 14,488;
which peaks dramatically in mid-1990s; between October 1989 and May
1991, Soviet government permits right to freedom of travel for all its
citizens, regardless of family separation (the law goes into full effect by
1 January 1993).
Nov. 1987- Gorbachev publicly condemns Stalins crimes.
Oct. 1988 -Gorbachev is elected President of the USSR. In Moscow,
German Chancellor Kohl receives representatives of the ethnic-German
autonomy movement. In 1988: 45,572.
Mar. 1989 -All USSR, national elections include non-Communist Party
candidates. 90,000 Germans from USSR arrived in Germany.
Apr. 1990 -In Ulyanovsk, Russia, the German newspaper Nachrichten
begins circulation; in 1998, it is renamed Rundschau. As of June 1990 there
were over 55,000. It is anticipated that 100,000 to 120,000 Germans from the Soviet
Union would arrive in Germany in 1990. Why are these Germans emigrating from
the Soviet Union? Their living conditions are now much better than they were in the
1950s. They have nice homes-many of them in communities of fellow Germans-and
they live as well as if not better than other Soviet citizens. Why are they ocking to
West Germany? BECAUSE THEY ARE GERMAN!
The Soviet Germans hold strongly to their German heritage and do not want
to lose it. They are so scattered throughout the land that they cannot preserve their
ethnic identity. They fear that if they are not allowed to retain their German heritage
they will disappear. One man in Leninskoye said, Wenn ich wusste, dass ich morgen
meine Muttersprache verlieren wurde, wurde ich lieber sterben. (If I knew that I
would lose my mother tongue tomorrow, I would rather die.) Their grandchildren
already do not speak German. The people know that if they are not given an Au-
tonomous German Region where they can continue to learn and speak German,
with German schools and churches, if they cannot continue to practice their age-old
German traditions, there will be total assimilation with the Soviet culture, and there
will no longer be a German ethnic identity in the Soviet Union. It will be as if there
had never been any Germans in Russia.
1 July 1990 -Germanys Ethnic-German Immigrant-Admission Law; pro-
ceedings for admission must be carried out from the country of origin.
Sept. 1990 -In the Lower Tagil of the Sverdlovsk Region, the rst memorial
to Soviet Germans of the Stalinist genocide is made public (opened).
13 Sept. 1990- Established in 1957 as central information source for
Russian Germans, Neues Leben is registered for rst time as independent
newspaper; it no longer falls under political, ideological supervision of
Pravda and CC of CPSU.
3 Oct. 1990-Political unication of West and East Germany completed.
14 Nov. 1990 -Newspaper Neues Leben publishes open letter from Ger-
mans of Chelyabinsk, Russia, to President Gorbachev and Chancellor
Kohl with requests to permit resettlement (migration) to Germany by all
who wish to.
21 Dec. 1990 -In Saratov, Russia, the Zeitung der Wolgadeutschen is begun;
in July 1994, it is renamed the Wolgazeitung.
10 July 1991- By election, Boris Yeltsin is president of Russian Federa-
tion.
19-29 Aug. 1991 -Attempted coup by conservative Soviet leaders, who ar-
rest Gorbachev in Crimea; with various supporters standing beside him (one
Russian-German activist Alexander Bier), Russian President Yeltsin leads
a peaceful, popular uprising in Moscow against the plotters; Gorbachev
returns to Moscow and resigns as General Secretary of Communist Party;
in most Soviet republics, Communist Party activities are temporarily sus-
pended, pending an investigation of its role in attempted coup.
Dec. 1991 -In Samara Oblast, land set aside for German settlers.
25 Dec. 1991 After seventy-four years, the formal demise of the USSR
following President Gorbachevs resignation.
1992 -In Kiev, Ukraine, the German newspaper Deutscher Kanal is started
up.
After the USSR breaks up, the VOSN becomes known as the Interna-
tional Union (Association) of Germans of the Former USSR Rebirth
(Zwischenstaatlicher Vereinigung der Deutschen der ehemaligen UdSSR
Wiedergeburt/ Mezhgosudarstvennoe obedinenie nemtsev byvshego
SSSR Vozrozhdenie or ZSVD/MON); in 1992, the Rebirths member-
ship climbs to about 100,000.
18 Feb. 1992 -The Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR decides on the founding
of the German National Rayon of Asovo in the Omsk area.
29-30 Oct. 1992 -In Almaty, the First Congress of Germans in Kazakhstan
is held.
Nov. 1992- In Almaty, Kazakhstan, German embassy is opened. In Rus-
sia, Orenburger Allgemeine Zeitung established; prints rst issue at start
of 1993.
1 Jan. 1993 -Feeling pressure of mass immigration, Germany issues decree
regulating compensation for war-induced losses, guarantees legal entry
148
all Germans who wish to go to Germany; along with cutbacks in social
services, an annual quota in Germanys admission of Aussiedler, (225,000
from both former USSR and Eastern Europe, vast majority of Aussiedler
coming from CIS).
4-6 Feb. 1993 -In Saratov, creation of National Organization of Volga
Germans (Landsmannschaft der Wolgadeutschen), led by Yuri Haar.
4-11 Sept. 1994 -The Festival of German Culture in Volga Region (Sara-
tov, etc).
31 May 1996- An agreement is signed between Germany and Kazakhstan
concerning cooperation on the support of citizens of German nationality
in Kazakhstan.
24 Nov. 1996 -First Congress of Ukrainian Germans elects Peoples Council
(Volksrat der Deutschen der Ukraine), Heinrich Groth, chairman. General
Council of International Association Rebirth created (Generalrat der
Zwischenstaatlichen Vereinigung Wiedergeburt).
14-15 Mar. 1997- In Kyrgyzstan, the total of around 100,000 ethnic
Germans was declined to about 20,000 in recent years (an eighty percent
decrease).
30 July 1997 -Ukraines German population is still rather small.
Late 1997 -In Russia, Kazakhstan and Ukraine, more than 6,000 German-
1anguage courses established across 600 communities; there remains the
task of improving the quality of German-language education.
12 May 1998 -The rst residents of the model settlement of Neudorf-Strenla
near St. Petersburg move into their homes.
June 1998- The rst issue of the Moskauer Deutsche Zeitung appears; the
papers predecessor ran from 1870 to 1914.
Oct. 1998-Present -Jochen Welt of the SPD is named the new German
Government Representative of Aussiedler Affairs, replacing the long-serv-
ing Horst Waffenschmidt of the CDU/CSU .
Late 1998 -In Kazakhstan, where at start of 1990s approximately 1,000,000
Germans lived, about 250,000 remain (75% decrease); in Uzbekistan during
same period, German population declined from about 101,000 to around
10,000 (roughly a 90% decrease); most of these have gone to Germany, a
much smaller share to Russian Federation (particularly West Siberia).
Late 1999 -During a fty-year span beginning in 1950, a total of 1,885,333
Aussiedler emigrated from regions of former USSR to Germany; about 95%
of this total (or 1,790,226) left for Germany only in the period after 1986
(the era of emigration policy relaxation in the former USSR).
31 Dec. 1999- Only a few months before Russias scheduled presidential
election, an ailing scandal-ridden Yeltsin steps down; his then popular 47-
year-old. Prime Minister former KGB intelligence ofcer Vladimir Putin
assumes Russias presidency.
1 Jan. 2011- In January 1993, the German government established a closing
date for future ethnic-German immigration; German descendants (Abkom-
mlinge) born after 31. December 1992 will no longer enjoy right to make
a personal request for immigration to Germany.
up plans to deport all the Volga-Germans before the war but didnt get a chance to
put the plan into action. Germans were deported from their homes.
The great majority of those who had pleaded with the commissars were forcibly
returned to the homes they had in many cases abandoned or were sent into the exile
which Solzhynitsin called Gulag Archipelago. They were among the thousands
upon thousands classied as kulaks and for that reason destroyed. The kulak was no
more. Treated as lesser beings, stripped of citizenship in most cases, their farms and
possessions conscated, they were herded into the new collective farms and those
that resisted were sent into the forests and mines of Siberia. Perhaps ten million
persons, including their children, were deported for their real and supposed resistance
to the forced pace of industrialization and collectivization.
If they escaped that fate in 1929, they suffered during the purges of the next
decade. There they got caught in Stalins paranoia against all resisters, old regimists
of every class, and all enemies, real or imagined. As is generally known, the much
publicized purges began in 1934, and were accelerated in 1937-38.
Much has already been written about the famine of the early 1920s and the
assistance of the American Relief Association. Our grandparents sent money, food,
clothing to their relatives in Russia. This was greatly appreciated and saved many
lives. Aussiedler who, with tears in their eyes, have talked about eating in the soup
kitchens which the Ara provided.
It was at this time that many of the Germans moved to the warmer climates of
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tadzhikistan, and Kirgizia.
As mentioned earlier, the Germans began petitioning for the restoration of the
German Volga Republic in 1964. When that was refused, they petitioned again in
1978, this time for an autonomous region in the North Caucasus-but the Kazakhs
objected.
The Germans moving into the Volga Region again faced harassment; they
were called Fascists, their children were taunted as being Fascists, they were stoned,
they were very poorly treated. There have been many demonstrations against the
restoration of the republic. During these demonstrations placards are carried with
such messages as:
We defended the Volga in 1941 and will do so in 1990!
We need no third Germany!
Russia for the Russians!
Rather AIDS than Germans!
Things have been so bad in the Volga Region that approximately one third of
the Germans who had moved there have since left it again.
Things are especially difcult for the Germans in Kirgizia. So many people
have emigrated from Kirgizia that it is now very difcult for those still wanting to
leave to sell their homes. The Kirgiz dont want to buy them. They feel the Germans
are going to leave anyway, so why should they pay money for something they can
have for free? It has gotten so bad that now the Kirgiz walk in and take whatever
they want as soon as a German puts in an application to be allowed to emigrate.
Things are very tense for the Germans living in the Asiatic republics today, but life
in the Russian S.F.S.R. is easier for the Germans.
The hardest obstacle to overcome is prejudice against them by the local Ger-
mans. They have come to the land of their forefathers to live as Germans among
Germans, but they are treated as foreigners. Much of this prejudice is due to their
language difculties. Most of the Aussiedler age forty or younger speak no German,
and the little children speak only Russian. Those families which were able to stay
together and live in groups of Germans, and those families which had German-
speaking grandmothers living with them were best able to maintain their language
skills. Even if they do speak German, most of them speak a dialect only and no High
German (or standard German). Unfortunately, people are prejudiced against people
who speak differently than they do.
Before the occupation of the Ukraine and the North Caucasus by German
troops during World War II, [by Oct. 1941] virtually all North Caucasus Germans
had been deported to middle Asia [Kasachstan] and Siberia. Only a very small
number evaded the deportation net and came into contact with German troops &
later resettled in Germany.
Today there are no German villages in the North Caucasus. The former villages
are now occupied by foreign peoples - Russian, Ukrainian, Tatar, Tschetschen,
Nogai, etc. The former German residents of the North Caucasus are dispersed
throughout the world. The majority are living in middle Asia & in Siberia; a small
number in West Germany and in North and South America. Nobody however, can
take from them their reputation [honor, renown] of being premier farmers. They
cultivated the wide and desolate steppe districts and made them productive with
great sacrice. This honor will be theirs to the end of their days.
A large church was erected with white stone. Among others, an Armenian
served the congregation as its pastor for several years who could uently speak
German, Russian, and Armenian.
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REAL LIFE STORIES OF UNREST & TURMOIL:
#1 GOTTLIEB:
1916
This is the story of anybodys uncle, or father or grandfather; looking at it in
perspective from 1991, as a descendent of a German from Russia. This mans name
was Gottlieb Saur. Born in 1893 the 9th of 10 children, near Odessa, Bessarabia,
149
Russia. He attended school for six years and married when he was 22 years old.
During the First World War in 1916 he was drafted. Since he only had one eye he
was sent to an old town fortress on the Dnister River. Not everybody got a bed on
which to sleep, so he found a place under a lentil. He had to take care of all of
his own needs. Everyday they had salty sh soup to eat but no water to drink. His
group worked in ice cellars and they had to pull their own wagons because there
were no horses. Many times they worked all day long carrying sand using their coat
tails as a bag. In June of 1917 which was between the February and the October
Revolution -after resistance was collapsing on all the fronts he was dismissed from
his duties and returned to his family. He became an independent farmer on land his
father gave him to farm.
There would be things that he could write about regarding the Civil War in
Russia with its unrest, requisitions, rebellions and so on during the Revolution but
he had enough to write about; in 1922 the Bolsheviks were victorious and began a
new agricultural system of land use. In 1923 the land was nationalized and every
farmer was granted 2 hectares per person in a family plus an additional 10 percent.
The German colonists were used to farming large areas, The smaller, newer allot-
ment looked as though it would be the ruin of economic well being, so they viewed
the future with fear. But through their diligence and intensive land management
system they had their economy back to prosperity within a few years and awakened
with new hope.
The second setback from which they realized they would never recover was
collectivization. The government needed much more grain for the huge industries in
the big cities and for export to exchange for machinery and to pay foreign engineers,
technicians, and various professional workers who were imported to develope the new
industries. The resident [native] Russians did not have the capability or know how
to establish these industries. This grain assessment was a huge problem every year.
The government paid very low prices. The government wanted the collective system
to be voluntary but most farmers would never voluntarily separate themselves from
their land and horses nor give up his individual economic enterprise. But everything
is possible in the Soviet state where the citizens signed up voluntarily, subjected
themselves to high taxes voluntarily, went bare footed and were prepared to die
of hunger if this Soviet government commanded it.
In November 1929 meetings were held almost daily, lasting late into the night.
The farmers were talked to incessantly trying to convince them to voluntarily sub-
mit to collective farming. The meetings were boring, farmers fell asleep or simply
walked away, some did not even come. Then those who ran the meeting decided on
an election and voted in favor of a collective. When the presiding chairman of the
meeting asked who was against collectivization no one raised a hand. The Conclusion
was formed that all were in favor. It was sort of a railroad job. A commission
was formed of whose members some of who where teachers who went from yard
to yard and with promises and threats convinced the farmers to be volunteers sup-
porting collectivization.
By January, 1930 ninety ve percent of this area farmers were in the collec-
tive. Those well to do farmers, called Kulaks were driven from their homes so
that the best of the farms became part of the collective. Farmers now were referred
to as full activist. Horses, wagons, machinery, and equipment were delivered to
the collective in the name of the spirit of collectivization and to further strengthen
the governments hold on the collective thirty families were deported in February
that were resistors. In addition to these Kulaks, the deportees included average
farmers suspected of opposing collectivization and ardent supporters of the church.
They were loaded into wagons owned by the collective, then the meat, lard, and
other valuables were conscated. Under strong escort of mounted guards the were
taken to a railroad station 30 kilometers away where they were loaded into cattle
cars and transported to the far north. In spite of harsh measures it was rather quiet
among those forced into the collective. There were a few villages with uprisings by
women who armed themselves with schythes, pitchforks, and clubs. Stones were
thrown at ofcers and dignitary. Soviets seen outdoors. There were a few demon-
strations and threatening uproars. Since party people were strictly forbidden to use
guns there was no resistance. These government uprisings gradually diminished
and nally ceased.
In one village, early in the morning, the GPU held a meeting to ask of anyone
who felt that they had been forced into collectivization and said they could leave the
collective because it was supposedly known that these were voluntary ventures.
The older people were distrustful and suspicious of this offer but the younger people
took their equipment and went back to their own farmyards.
In the summer of 1930 every farmer who wished could be self employed,
only those who were members of what they called the committee of the poor stayed
in the collectives. In December of 1930 they began a new propaganda campaign
under the slogan 100% collectivization. They held meeting after meeting and
went from house to house attempting to convince people to voluntarily go into the
collectives and threats accompanied these visits. Again there were ten families that
were actually singled out and deported, and other arrests were made as well. Finally
in 1931 all the farmers were in the collectives. Still in existence today with their
poor and hungry occupants.
Now the government had things going their way so they could order the Ger-
man colonists to deliver the prescribed quantity from the threshing oors to the
rail station for export instead of the tedious trouble of trying to extract it from the
small farmer.
In early 1930, Gottlieb was forced into a situation that caused him no end of
problems and doomed him to misery for the rest of his life. At the time, every farmer
had to get a veried certicate from the village ofcial which designated the allotted
amount of grain which he could grind into our for his families needs. It wasnt
enough food for the family. It was possible to go to a neighboring village and grind
grain. Some of his good friends and he decided to do this in secret and at night but
in spite of their precautions someone found out about it and reported them. Soon
after he was summoned to the militia to appear before an agent of the GPU [which
was the secret police]. After hearing the report about his deed the GPU agent said
that there was a report that he had agitated against the Soviet regime in a stall of a
cooperative store. Gottlieb told him that he wasnt even in the store and that this was
false but the GPU agent wouldnt hear of it and harshly argued that he was guilty
and would have to confess.
He was put in a bunker in the evening and the next morning he was summoned
to confess again but he refused. The GPU agent told him that he had sinned griev-
ously but it could be forgiven if he would agree to work with them. So he told him
how he could become an informer. He said that there were many people that were
dissatised and complained about the government and that these people had to be
reported but with great care and in secret so that no one knew who the informer was.
The informer was to come out only at night and make his reports.
He insisted that Gottlieb be an informer so he slipped a piece of paper in front
of him and asked him to sign it. Gottlieb was taken by surprise and signed it without
reading the contents. After the GPU had pulled it from his hands he told Gottlieb
to bring back his rst report in fourteen days. After he got out in the fresh air it oc-
curred to him what a misdeed he had created. He did not want to report his fellow
companions. He decided to put off making his reports and make excuses instead. In
the following days and following nights he found it difcult to sleep. He had dreams
that tortured his conscience.
When he did not show up in fourteen days he was summoned again and used
all sorts of excuses as to why he did not follow their orders. They allowed him
another fourteen days without urgency. He drove to a neighboring village where he
found work as a day laborer. He thought that he could use this as an excuse for not
informing. It did not work.
Through February, 1932 he went to the GPU more than thirty times and used
all sorts of excuses to avoid informing on anyone.
On these days his wife was aware that he was coming home late and wanted
to know where he had been so he told her that he went to see this or that friend. She
soon discovered that he was lying to her and became very unhappy at this. He still
did not want to tell her what actually was going on.
Near the end of January 1932 the GPU summoned him to appear again. But
after that he did not have to appear for some time.
When he was summoned again the GPU agent had lost patience with him. He
categorically asked the question again: if he planned to fulll his obligation and be-
come a secret agent. Gottlieb replied that he would not. The GPU agent became angry
and threatened him violently; however he was dismissed and thought he was free.
One day in February while he and his wife were on a holiday visit, his children
came to him and reported that a commission was to come to our house to conscate
the property. They immediately went to their house to protect their more important
possessions and waited until late into the night but no commission showed up. He
thought that it was only a maneuver to scare them.
Soon, however, he was ousted from the collective. At that time there was a
saying Today, ousted from the collective, tomorrow, arrested and put into custody;
followed by ten years of forced labor. Within about a week the GPU called him in.
The local agent asked him what he thought he would like to be doing. He replied
that he would like to work as a day laborer in a Soviet estate. They said, There you
could serve as a secret agent and you would, have to make a report on your village
companions. But he declined the offer and resolved never again to become involved.
He applied again to get back into the collective. He was accepted by the collective
and in the early summer worked as a repairman, repairing various implements. He
was awarded twice for good achievement and sent to the ofce after threshing season
to keep records of the workers performance and output. He felt that peace and rest
once again had come over his household.
In the later part of December, 1932 in the middle of the night the militia knocked
on his door and required of Gottlieb to empty his gun. Gottlied said that he had never
owned a gun and they said that they had come to search his house. They ransacked
everything and found nothing that they were seeking. They made a record of what
they had found and Gottlieb had to sign papers.
Gottlieb had to accompany the leader of this group and so he left his ve sob-
bing children and his wife wringing her hands.
By daybreak twenty-two men had been arrested in this community. A member of
the GPU appeared and made a brief statement. He said THAT THEY WERE BEING
ARRESTED AS AVERAGE FARMERS WITH BURIED GRAIN OR HIDDEN IN
SOME MANNER TO AVOID STARVATION.
They were locked up and after three days began detailed, many faceted personal
interrogations. Name, birth dates, names of parents, brothers, sisters, addresses,
friends, and so on were requested. Additionally, they asked who they knew in foreign
countries & if any letters were being exchanged.
He was threatened and persecuted and was rather forced to answer questions
that there werent any answers for.
Every day three to six recently arrested men joined the group and there were
jokes, Now you dont have to be afraid anymore that you will be arrested. Now
that you are here you can get your rest.
In January, 1933, nine men, including Gotlieb, were taken to the railroad depot
to be transported to another place. His wife heard of it so she came to the depot with
clothing, food, and other items.
They were taken to the district capital where they were placed into quarantine.
On the rst night some of their belongings were stolen. After a week they moved to
the main prison. The next day four of the men were called and shipped out. They
were told that they would have to serve three years at a hard labor camp for. spread-
ing anti-Soviet propaganda. The remaining ve, including Gottlieb, had a handicap
or were unt for hard labor so they put them in a cell which at the time of the Czars
was only big enough for one or two people. There were 21 or 22 people pressed into
this small area. For their daily food they got a hundred grams of bread, about one
liter of tomatoes, pickles or millet soup, plus a substitute coffee. After a while their
wives were allowed to bring them additional food.
They derived little benet from it as the resident criminals raided and robbed
them and were very inconsiderate of them.
At the end of February he was transferred to a different cell which was always
locked. There it was almost unbearable because of the odors and lth. Everyone had
to relieve themselves in the one pail. Soon diarrhea broke out among those of them
in the cell. One man died in the night. When one of the prisoners wanted to carry
out the pail which was already full to overowing he knocked loudly on the door
until an over-seerer came to permit him to take the pail out. When he came back
the over seerer kicked him so hard that he ew into the middle of the room where
he laid for a while. Under these conditions each of them had only one wish and that
was to get out of the cell as soon as possible. At last a day came when they were
turned over to the transport guards and their belongings were thoroughly searched.
Gottlieb had some honey which was conscated.
They were taken to the depot and went by train to Kiev where they spent four-
teen days in the passageway of a prison. Here they got twenty two hundred grams
of bread and also better soup. Then they went to a famous prison in Moscow where
they got four hundred grams of food, but they were only there four days. Then they
went to Wolgada where they were driven like cattle to the rail station and to their
prison. The guards used their rie butts to urge them along. The next morning, they
were handed a paper which they were to take along with them on a journey. They
were expected to go to work camps in the far north.
Those who thought they could get away from this and get tickets to get back
home were mostly recaptured. It was expected that they would suffer greater con-
sequences. Gottlieb felt that he could faithfully serve his three year sentence and as
a free man then return to his family. He happened to team up with a Ukranian from
the same district whose destination was supposed to be the same as Gottliebs. A
great deal of distance [a hundred kilometers]. They went on foot, begging for food
as they went. There were plenty of forests at their destination so there was plenty
of work but there was no food. The local populace was in dire need of food. On the
way he traded a new pair of trousers for two kilograms of barley. He pawned his
bedding to get money to send a telegram to his wife so she would know where he
was to ask her for help. This was in April and the roads were impassable so there
was no way he could receive any mail. He worked in a barrel factory for a week and
earned some money but there was no food to buy. He fashioned knives out of an old
saw blade which he sought to trade for food and other essentials. The results were
meager. When he was able to make a trade it was more out of compassion exhibited
by the people than the value of the knife. These people in this area had been banished
from their homes too and their needs were much the same as Gottliebs. He soon
became desperate. He caught dogs and butchered them, but this was also forbidden.
Fat sheep, horses, poultry, and other fowl were very tasty to them but they did not
nd many. Finally money did come from his wife but no one could buy food. They
could make low priced tobacco and wine and these items could be exchanged for
potatoes and sometimes a piece of bread. But on this arrangement he could not build
strength for the duration of his sentence.
His family was also in need at this time. They did not have enough to help
him. He concluded that he must ee.
He began his ight in September of 1933. He struck out in the direction of a
village where his brother-in-law had lived during his exile. He had visited him there
in 1931 and was therefore familiar with the settlement. He would not go near it in
daylight for fear of recognition. So in the dark he went to the village well to wait
for him to come for water. Since he didnt come for water Gottlieb knocked on the
door and was softly admitted to where they exchanged a lot of talk. The next day
he was almost apprehended even though he didnt leave the house. He was sitting
in the corner near the stove and the commander came to the door. He quickly hid
his head behind the fur coat that hung near him on the wall. The commander simply
reminded his sister not to build too strong a re that day. He left without noticing he
was there even though Gottliebs feet stuck out from underneath the coat.
The next morning he intended to set out for a river 12 kilometers away to board
a ship to go further. His brother-in-law warned him that there was an informer there,
a man named Raszler, who he was likely to meet. In the area near the river, just as
he was about to step aboard the ship he met people from his home village. They were
surprised to have run into him there. They questioned him and then surprised him by
giving him a few potatoes. Suddenly one of them said, The informers coming so
Gottlieb quickly gathered the potatoes and left. Common sense told him to go to the
town of Totma on foot. So he walked 60 kilometers along the banks of the river. The
third day he arrived in Totma, the boat came there too and among the passengers were
the same people from his village again. A day and a night passed without incident
but then began a manhunt [search for fugitives] a secret agent [informer] came and
detained the people from his village. Luckily he slipped by. After the agent left he
decided to get something to eat and sat down at a table near the ships kitchen. He
had hardly been sitting for 10 minutes when the agent came directly to him and asked
him for his pass. Then he demanded to see his ticket. Then he said come with me.
He interrogated Gottlieb in his cabin and wanted to know how he got papers and
how much he had to pay for them. He then told Gottlieb that he would deliver him
to the prison in Wogatta and make inquiries about him in his home village. Then he
sent Gottlieb away, but kept his papers and his ticket.
When the ship arrived in Wogatta, Gottlieb did not know what to do. He did
not know how to get off the ship without having evidence of a ticket. He had a match
box in his pocket and he tore the cover off of it and pressed it into the hand of the
controller at the gate hoping that he would not take notice that it was a fraud and it
worked. He made his way to the railroad station and purchased a ticket directly to
the second rail station just before his home village. The connections at Moscow were
not good and it was not until the next day that a train departed in the direction that
he wanted to go. In the evening all the passengers had to leave the depot because it
was scheduled to be cleaned. He went with the rest of the people to a street outside.
It was not long before it was being patrolled [checked]. He quickly sought another
haven but there too people were being checked and soon a patrol member came in
his direction. He quickly ran toward an open gate on the other side, walked along
a wooden wall and noticed an opening in the wall into which he crawled. There he
spotted a large shipping crate and crawled inside and fell asleep. He was awakened
by the sound of a creaking door. When he became aware of his surroundings, he
realized that he was next to a watchmans cottage. The watchman had opened the
door and hung his coat on it. Gottlieb quickly crawled back through the hole in
the wall and unseen walked through the gate into the depot. There he fell into the
scrutiny of some guards who searched him and took him to the rail station police.
When he got to the rail station police they were talking to women that were selling
milk in the depot. The police asked him how it happened that he was at the rail road
station. He told them the whole situation. They asked him for his papers. Gottlieb
told them the papers had been stolen from him at Wogotta. They told him that he
could continue on his journey and he was very happy.
While he had been away in banishment his family had been evicted from their
own home and were living in the horse barn at the farm where his father had once
lived. When he got home his wife was so surprised she fainted. When she came to, and
with the children, they spent one of the best hours of their lives together in that barn.
The joy and peace did not last. He always had to hide in the cellar, in the upstairs, in
the barn or under the bed. Only in the dark of night was he able to go outside.
At night, in October of 1933, [the October nights near the Black Sea were
always unusually dark] they had gone to visit his brother-in-law nearby. They stayed
overnight and the next morning their daughter came and said the militia had been at
their place and asked about Gottlieb. The children told them that their father was still
in exile in the forest and that their mother had driven from town so they left.
This repeated on January 6, 1935. The militia came after him at four in the
morning but it so happened that he was spending the night outdoors in the yard. He
was not apprehended. To stay in his home village became more and more danger-
ous. The general political situation worsened. The people of the collective were
given orders not to return to the village on the evening before Easter and to stay in
the elds overnight and continue with the eld work the next day Easter Sunday.
The order was not heeded but instead on Saturday evening they went back to the
village with all their equipment. This disregard for orders was branded as an act of
political sabotage and some of the farmers who were involved were banished from
the collective.
During such a period personal freedoms were removed and the activities of the
informers was intensied. For this reason he joined a group of farmers who ed to
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the Caucasus Region where the political climate was of greater leniency. This was
the area from which Grandpa John Eckerdt came from. They quickly found work
in this new area but soon became ill with malaria and he decided to return home.
It took Gottlieb a month to recover enough to be able to work again. Since it was
unbearable to be in hiding at his house all the time he decided to go to the town of
Perwomaisk. There he found the work was neither happy or satisfying and so he
returned to his family in his home village again.
One evening in October, 1935 while visiting his nephew and after having
gone to sleep in his nephews home there came a knock shortly after midnight and
the house was surrounded by six policemen. Two of the police came in and hauled
Gottlieb out and locked him up. The next day he got a hearing and was returned to
jail. He appealed to the chief of the G.P.U. in the main district and one evening was
taken to the chief G.P.U. ofcer who asked about his families welfare. The G.P.U.
ofcer told him that they could help him if Gottleib would help him. He repeated
again the same old story, Ill give you ten days, and in that course of time you bring
me evidence, in black and white, that you discovered a terrorist organization in the
village or in the vicinity of it. If you prove yourself, we will let you go completely
free. We will also pay you good money and you can go back to your family and live
in peace. Inwardly he was convinced that there was no such organization and he
knew that he could in no way bring back such information. It was also clear that if
he openly refused his family would suffer dire consequences. Every Soviet citizen
knew that the G.P.U. did not tolerate any resistance. The only way out was to say
yes and trust luck and hope that everything would turn out for the best. When he
got home in the middle of the night his hopes for happiness were great. He told his
family that he was freed for ten days but did not mention about the terrorist orga-
nization he was supposed to discover. Those ten days went by amazingly fast. The
evening of the tenth day when he said good-bye to his family there were many tears
and much pain. With heart pounding, he knocked on the G.P.U. chiefs door and
the G.P.U. chief was busy so Gottlieb went, back into a garden where he fell asleep.
Around midnight he visited the G.P.U. ofcer who asked him what information he
had brought him. Gottliebs answer was, No, I couldnt nd anything. He was then
hauled away to the jail in the district capital again. The circumstances were better
than in 1933. He worked in a shop where iron bedsteads were made and set up. He
found it much easier to endure his interment while he was busy working.
One day he was called to look into an incident involving a swastika at a school.
He investigated that and came back and told the ofcer that it was a prank but the
ofcer would not believe him. One night the door opened to his cell and his name
was called and he went to the ofcer and had to answer all sorts of questions about
personal matters and next of kin. They ngerprinted him, took him before a court of
about ten justices and asked him many questions. To most of the questions Gottlieb
kept silent so they put him into a prison cell. After a period in the district capital
they transported him to the far north of Moscow without a stop at the prison again
at Wogotta. After a week there he was moved to Schangkala by way of Welsk. After
a week there he was handed a sealed envelope and sent unaccompanied to Troisk.
He had to walk the fty kilometers to Troisk. On the way curiosity got the best of
him so he opened the envelope and read the contents. It was written to the Troisk
militia and stated that he was an administrative exile who must be accommodated,
directed and supervised. With this he was satised because it could have been much
more serious. He carefully sealed the envelope.
The militia at Troisk sent him to the village authorities in Jamnage with a slip
of paper. The village authorities showed him where he could get work. The date
was March 20, 1936. He notied the family where he was at. He soon received two
packages and thirty rubles. He did not even know who the senders were because
they withheld their names -undoubtedly out of fear of reprisal. In Soviet Russia it
had been for many years dangerous to be connected or associated with those who
had vanished. Also his wife sent him some things and he was soon able to build up
his strength. In comparison to 1933, it too had signicantly bettered in the north.
One could now buy unlimited amounts of bread, butter, grits and other foods. But
it was certainly necessary to have support from others so as to maintain health and
well being. He had worked at a national activity which was to extract raw material
[resin tar] from pine. He was soon living comfortably. He pledged to produce three
tons of raw material as his quota. He was not informed about the duration of time he
was to spend in exile. He wrote a letter to the authorities of the interior department.
One day when he came from work to his barracks he met the camp administrator
who told him he was going home. He fullled his quota for work and departed. He
had made many friends while there and found it somewhat tearful as he departed. He
made his way to Shangkala, fty kilometers distant where he arrived on the morning
of the third day. He rid himself of lice, went to the river bank and boiled his clothes.
He then strengthened himself with food prepared from our.
He went to an ofcial who asked in a loud voice what paragraph he had been
arrested under. She then opened a book and said that Gottliebs name was under
counter-revolution. The ofcial lled out a discharge certicate and went to a chief
and signed it and handed it to Gottlieb and on the 25th of July, 1936 he again arrived
in his home village. The happiness of being united with his loved ones was diminished
the very next day. He went to the police to register and was asked for his papers and
told that he could not register there because he had been a political prisoner. He was
directed to leave the village within twenty-four hours. He did not know what to do
or where to go. It wasnt simple for him to leave the area from where he was born
and grew up. He did not want to be in a hurry to leave.
One day as he wandered around in the market place he was accosted by a
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militia man who asked him if he was the one who had been in exile. He was then
directed to go to the guard room by 11 oclock with his dismissal certicate. Within
a few minutes upon arriving at the guard room the G.P.U. chief reprimanded him
for not registering with him. He told Gottlieb that he was not to live in the village
because he had been banished for being a political agitator but if Gottlieb would
help the G.P.U. then the G.P.U. would help him. He repeated the same story as he
had told him in October 1935. In fourteen days Gottlieb was to bring him material
about a terrorist group. Well, Gottlieb knew that such an organization did not even
exist and could not exist. Each farmer had only one wish and that was to be left in
peace to do his work. When he got home he told his wife the whole story. She shook
her head and said No way; up to now we have suffered in dirt. This late in life we
can tolerate whatever else comes our way. In fourteen days he went back to G.
P. U. with the strong intention of telling him that he did not discover any terrorist
organization. G.P.U. was not there so he went home in good spirits and he worked
daily at the collective. In six weeks the G.P.U. called him back in and asked Have
you any material?. Gottlieb replied, No. Why not? Because I couldnt nd
any. The G.P.U. pounded his st on the table and shouted, In twenty four hours
you will leave this village with or without your family.
So Gottlieb went into hiding again. After several weeks in a secretive and round
about way he contacted the public prosecutor for the area to register a complaint. The
public prosecutor told him that there was nothing that he could do but he advised
him to submit a petition for mercy to the highest court. He went to the district public
prosecutors ofce who in turn sent him to the solicitor general who prepared the
application for pardon. He paid him twenty ve rubles and the application was sent
in but an answer was never returned.
For a hiding place he was in the vineyards outside the village and after a long
time spent waiting for the answer that never came the vineyards became no longer
a safe place to hide. One night his wife brought him some clothes and money and
he went to the rail station and took a train to Perwomaisk. Upon look:ing for work
he found permanent work was not available and that it was not a safe place. So he
wandered back and forth, one day in Perwomaisk and another back again.
In January, 1937, it occurred to him that some of his fellow countrymen from
his home village had settled in Kirowgrad. He drove there and investigated the pos-
sibility of going into hiding there. First he had to register with the G.P.U. before he
could look for work. He decided to do that. An employee of the G.P.U. looked at his
papers, a relief certicate, and pass and abruptly said, Go to the militia, they should
register you. So, for forty rubles as a bribe he was hired as an illegal employee in a
small iron foundry where he was employed a long time without any serious problem.
His pass then expired and had to be renewed. When he went to the local G.P.U. to
renew, they were bewildered at how he could have been registered with the militia
without being registered with the G.P.U. So, they sent him to a room where he had
to back register; there they took all his family history and names of relatives and
ngerprints. They then put him on the black list.
A reign of terror swept through the country in connection with the show of action
in Moscow against those opposing Stalin. He learned that many of his countrymen
with whom he had found refuge had been arrested. He felt that he was in danger
again after the new registration, too, and so disappeared from this area. He went
back to his home village and remained there a month in hiding. Later he returned to
Kirowograd and stealthily made an enquiry to determine what had happened during
his absence. He learned that a number of the foundry workers had been questioned at
a judicial hearing and had to respond to questions about who Gottlieb was, and what
Gottlieb talked about. The workers had all spoken well of him. He had wages coming
from the foundry but was not paid for some time because there was no money in the
wages account. He stayed at the home of a countryman and did mending to pass the
time. Eventually the foundry settled his account and then he went to Krywarrog to
look for work there. He found a place to stay and hide with an older married couple,
but was unable to nd work.
One day he inquired about work at a factory and the chief there went through
his papers, handed them back to him, and said, Here, such people we cannot use. Get
out of here. He went back to his family and hid in different corners. In September he
received a letter from his brother-in-law, Phillip George, through the help of relatives.
In the letter he related that he was working on a construction crew building embank-
ments on a railroad line near Fasto. Gottlieb thought he could get work there too,
so he went to his brother-in-law who introduced him to the foreman and hired him.
Two other Countrymen he knew also worked and lived there with their families. He
felt comfortable, and at ease and worked with a great deal of enthusiasm.
Within a week one of them was arrested during the night. No one knew for what
reason. Everyone was upset about it and his brother-in-law, being cautious, made
arrangements to spend the night in a neighboring Ukranian village. His brother-in-
laws wife became angry at this and rebuked him for his actions and said that he had
no reason to hide. After several uneventful nights he decided to come home so his
wife would stop grumbling. He returned and lived with his family in their barracks
home. Gottlieb lived in the kitchen in the barracks home of his brother-in-law.
One night about six days after one of their companions had been arrested Got-
tlieb was awakened from a deep sleep and heard a knock on the door and a voice
calling for his brother-in-law. When the brother-in-law opened the door people
from the G.P.U. walked in and announced that he was under arrest. Gottlieb heard
exchanges of words and blows being administered to his brother-in-law. The G.P.U.
152
ransacked the house, including Gottliebs trunk. Luckily no one came into the kitchen
so Gottlieb was spared. The barracks were surrounded by police. The G.P.U. headed
to the neighboring barracks where another family by the name of Rath lived. As it
happened, Gustave Rath was out in the eld that night herding the horses. The secret
police stayed at the Rath home until he returned the next morning. Gottlieb went to
an isolated nook in the garden and slept until morning.
After breakfast he went to the place he worked and since it was a bit early
he hid in some bushes til it was time to work. The day went by without incident.
No one mentioned what had happened during the night. Shortly before evening
the foreman asked Gottlieb if he was registered as being under prohibition by the
police. He admitted that he wasnt and he told him to bring his pass with him in the
morning and he would take it to the police to have his name placed on the register.
Gottlieb did not want to get involved in another extensive incident and being under
threat, packed his things and went into the dark towards the city of Haivoron where
he had heard it wasnt as dangerous. He had heard that it was easy to get work there.
After he was far from the road, in a eld, he laid down on the ground and slept until
morning. Then he walked the rst forty kilometers toward Haivoron and then rode
the train the rest of the way.
In the railyards of Haivoron he was asked if he wanted work. He had no
problem nding work. There were several jobs available to him, but here again
he was directed to go immediately to the secret police and notify them that he was
there so that he could have the job. The secret police he did not want any thing to
do with again so he went back to his home village where they were in existence
also. There were secret police everywhere. Their presence was universal in Russia
and they were powerful. No, he would not voluntarily report to the secret police
anymore. He had his nose full of them. The situation was not different in his home
village. Every night someone was arrested. He had to change hiding places daily.
In this he had a lot of practice. But the duration and suspense of hiding made life
almost unbearable. His brother had experienced the madness of being arrested. His
arrest had made him even more fearful of being apprehended. Gottlieb therefore
decided to pack his bags in preparation for ight. In the meantime the number of
arrests continued to increase.
On December 23, 1937 he again left his home village bound for Kirowograd.
Once there he got work at the same foundry where he had worked the other time
when he was there as an illegal worker. Later when the kiln operator (making bricks)
left that position the foreman promoted him to this responsible and important post.
He was employed there for several years without disturbance or interference from
the G.P.U. He was twice honored with promotions for his good performance. Under
these conditions he developed a new outlook on life.
In June, 1940 he brought his wife and two sons to Kirowograd; the third son
stayed with his oldest daughter who had been married. Bad news continued from
his home village.
In December, 1937 his brother was arrested and then disappeared never to be
heard from again. In July, 1941 the son, who had stayed with his daughter, and several
other young men were deported to the hinterlands. Also his two good friends with
whom he had worked with in Perwomaisk fell upon evil times. One of them was ar-
rested in February and died while in exile. The other one vanished without a trace.
In 1941 during the occupation of the Ukraine by the German troops he took
his family back to the home village of Hoffnungstal. In 1943 they moved on to
Poland in retreat with the German army. When in April the Russian armies came
closer to the area they ed again, this time to Purlyberg, Poland. After that Gottliebs
countrymen and family wanted to go no further. We would starve anyway or be
shot and we wont reach the Elb
River anyway said the exhausted fugitives. Gottliebs wife and daughter re-
fused to go any further. Gottliebs pleas trying to persuade his family to embark on
this last courageous adventure was blowing in the wind [fell on deaf ears]. Either way
- that is go or stay was a terrifying situation. Exhaustion, fatigue, and indifference to
the threatening danger took possession of mind and will - and these prevailed. Now
Gottlieb was faced with an inhumanly difcult decision. The choices were either
remain with his family and fall into the hands of the Russians or ee alone. His brain
worked feverishly and an unspeakable deep pain seared his soul.
When the time was upon him to make a choice to stay with his family which
would mean a return to the same old persecution, the G.P.U. , imprisonment , and
compulsory labor. In either case it was to be a separation from his family forever. He
would rather be dead than return to the Russian paradise. So he took leave of his
family. The departure was beyond imagination. It was May 2, 1945, an unforgettable
date on the calendar of his life.
On that same evening he arrived at the Elb River near Lenzen where American
troops were stationed. The next morning he attached himself to a surrendering Ger-
man armor group. He had hoped to be transported across the river with them but
the order was military rst, then the civilians. He feared that the Russians would
be coming towards the river and that he would have to do something about it on his
own. He found a large beam on the river shore and attempted to cross riding on that
beam but was unable to steer. He moved on the water like a oundering ship and
was noticed by a crew manning an American motor boat. They hoisted him aboard
and took him to the other side of the river. He felt that he was fortunate to escape
from the Russian area.
He then lived on a farm, working with pleasure and in happiness in his work,
gradually training himself to forget the fears that were part of his past life. There he
did not have to fear arbitrary and senseless arrest. After a satisfying days work he
could rest in peace in a normal bed, but his family was far away. It was his silent
hope that in some way they would be subject to a compulsory repatriation and they
could let them come to him in the west, but it never happened. He learned that his
dear ones were transported to Siberia in December, 1945. He still hoped for to be
reunited and he never lost hope or courage while waiting. He ended his story [a
manuscript of this type] in 1951 with doubts that he would ever see his family again,
but he would continue to hope.
Shortly after he arrived in West Germany he got in touch with his brother in
Montana. His brother sponsored him and brought him to the United States in 1952
and after a few months went to South Dakota to live with his sister. He preferred
South Dakota, found employment in an Aberdeen hospital where he lived with his
sister until an apartment was available. At this time his sister was not aware that his
past life had been so inhumane.
In 1953 both his sister and brother passed away within a few weeks of each
other. This prompted him to go to West Germany, thinking that the opportunity to
contact his family had improved since now the disturbance with Russia had eased
and the mail was coming thru.
In the last letter that he wrote to one of his sisters in South Dakota in June
1962 he said I dont think that I will ever be able to bring my family to West
Germany. Every attempt that I have made has failed. I dont think that I will ever
see them again
Gottlieb Saur died July 1, 1962. His oldest son, Oskar, immigrated to West
Germany in 1972, too late to reunite with his father. Oskar died in 1981.
FUN AMIDST DIFFICULTY:
During the tough years of 1915-1987, these were a few pockets
of peace and calm. Events as described below are very likely
have occurred in our Kuban area, also and even prior to 1901
when our Eckerdts and Schutzs were still in the Kuban.
Those were restless times. The Communist watchword, Take everything
from the rich and give it to the poor [From each according to his ability, to each
according to his needs. Karl Marx, Critique of the Gotha Program, 1875] was,
of course, not received with great enthusiasm by the landowning farmers. These
farmers understandably felt insecure, were intimidated, and became quite fearful,
not knowing what the future would hold in store for them. Many reached for the
bottle to drown their worries and fears.
1921-1925
BAZAARS AND FAIRS IN THE BLACK SEA AREA
Alexander Dupper
On of my fondest recollections is the weekly bazaar and annual Panayr fair in
Katarzhino during the NEP time (1921-1928) in the Soviet Union.
The right to hold weekly bazaars and annual fairs was one of the many privileges
granted to the German and other foreign colonists by Catherine II (The Great), in
the momentous Manifesto of July 22, 1763. In Paragraph VI, Section 11, we read
the following:
...that all foreigners who have settled in colonies or country-towns settlements),
be given the right of holding markets and establishing annual fairs according to
their discretion, without paying taxes or the least amount of duty or tribute to our
treasury.
That was sweet music to the ears of the German colonists. As a little boy I
visited the bazaar and fair in Katarzhino when I could still go to Neu-Berlin, and
spend my summer vacation from the German school in Odessa
there. However, the following is an account of a day at the fair as it was told
me by my grandfather Matthias H. and my mother, when they were talking about
the good ol days.
Chai goryachii, bublik svezhii! That was the cry one heard from one end of
the bazaar (marketplace) to the other. Vendors pushed their two-wheeled carts all
over the place, advertising their kvass (sourish drink made from black bread and
malt) and hot tea with fresh bagels.
Yes, the bazaar in southern Russia was a lively and colorful event. The weekly
market played an important part in the economic, social, and cultural life of the
German farmer-colonists (settlers) in Russia. One did not come to the bazaar just to
sell, buy, or trade. One came to the bazaar with open eyes, ears, and nostrils to see,
hear, and smell everything in the ever-changing scene of the marketplace. The bazaar
was also a kind of entertainment event and a place to practice ones knowledge of
the Russian language.
The bazaars were held alternately, on different weekdays, in the larger villages
of the surrounding area. In the vicinity of Neu-Berlin there were three such bazaars
within easy reach by horse and buggy. The bazaar in Hoffnungstal (TsebrikoJvo),
some 12 kilometers west of parts, stood out among the villages of other ethnic groups
and could easily be recognized. Houses were built like the Russian and Ukrainian
ones, but were painted in bright, colorful designs, as were the fences. The Bulgarians
liked bright, cheerful colors which they prepared themselves from clay, lime, ashes,
and plant extracts. Large sunowers, big as wagon wheels, red roses, or blue tulips
with green leaves often decorated the outer walls of their buildings. Sometimes one
could see rather primitive fantastic or abstract scenes, but always in bright, even
garish, colors. Painting the walls and fences was the work of women; each one did
her best to show off her art. Admiring the freshly painted buildings during Pentecost
153
week was a real joy. Each Bulgarian house was graced by well-tended ower beds.
Special mention should be made of the Bulgarians knack of growing a great variety
of vegetables quite successfully. They were good sheep breeders and herders, and did
their own wool spinning and weaving. The Bulgarian women wore brightly colored
woolen skirts most of the time, even in summer.
The men wore their characteristic colorful shirts with a red sash around the
waist.
Katarzhino presented an especially picturesque view in the autumn, when lines
hung with garlic, onions, and paprika were strung along the buildings, and on the
roofs large pumpkins and melons were stored for ripening. Located at the conjunc-
tion of the Little and Middle Kuyalnik valleys, Katarzhino was the biggest village
in the county (volost) of Tsebrikovo (Hoffnungstal). It was a clustered village with
many streets (actually a little town).
There were two Orthodox churches, one with the usual onion-shaped domes,
and the other with a tapering steeple. One church was for the Bulgarian congrega-
tion, the other one for the mixed Russian-Ukrainian and Moidavian population. The
village also had a big school, a post ofce with telegraph, a country doctor, several
midwives, a our mill, a couple of country stores, and a kabak (tavern).
The bazaar in Katarzhino unfurled itself every Wednesday in the square near
the two churches. Sometimes the place was so crowded, especially in the autumn,
that the market spread into the side streets. A weekly bazaar in Russia looked much
like a ea market in America today.
Farmers sold their wares and products directly from their wagons (carts). The
wagons were parked on the street, side by side, with the fronts to the curb, along
both sides of the thoroughfare, leaving just enough space for people to walk through.
Horses were unhitched and turned around to enable them to get their fodder from
the wagons front, where they could also rest their lazy bones without being in the
way. Other farmers laid their stuff out on the ground, so that everybody could see
what they had for sale. In the marketplace there were also tents and wooden booths
belonging to professional merchants.
As mentioned before, the bazaar was more than just a place to sell and buy.
People came to see each other and to show off themselves. Old. friends from neigh-
boring villages greeted each other impetuously, and if by chance one should meet his
kum (godfather), they immediately went to the kabak (tavern) for a charka (glass)
of vodka. It was also the place to exchange the latest news-from village gossip to
political rumors, everything was discussed and disseminated.
The German farmers brought mostly grain, our, butter, and eggs for sale.
The Bulgarians offered their sheep, wool, brynza (feta or sheeps milk cheese), and
the whole range of vegetables, especially big bell peppers, eggplants, paprika, and
of course, watermelons in the summer. The most delicious fruits, such as cherries,
apricots, plums, and apples, were offered for sale by the Moidavians, who brought
them from their orchards and gardens in the Oniester and Kuchurgan valleys.
Wandering Gypsies were always present at every bazaar. They were consid-
ered the best horse traders (malicious people said that they were also the best horse
thieves), and, of course, fortune-tellers. The Gypsies really knew how to sell a horse.
There was a fad among young men who enjoyed showing off their. horses, especially
horses with a white star on the forehead, Well, the Gypsies knew just how to bleach
or paint a white star on every creature, even more perfect than Mother Nature.
Some farmers who thought they had bought a beautiful racehorse from a Gypsy
often discovered next morning at home that it was just an old nag, hardly able to
stand on its feet, But one could not complain about unfair business practices at the
bazaar-a deal was a deal! Buyers beware! A handshake concluded every deal, and a
mogorych (drink) sealed the deal forever.
The professional merchants at the bazaar were mostly Jews. They knew the
trade; they knew how to buy and sell; they set the price and, controlled the market.
For them the bazaar was serious business. The Jews played an important part in the
development of the German colonies in the Black Sea Area. Those who tried their
hand at farming usually failed, but as merchants they were among the most success-
ful. Many Jews spoke the Swabian dialect, and some Germans could understand the
Yiddish small talk. Jewish merchants were always very polite.
Bowing deeply, they would address older Germans with Grossviiterchen
(Dear Grandfather) or Grossmutterchen (Dear Grandmother), and the younger
adults with Vetter (uncle, cousin) and Bilsel (aunt, female cousin).
Sometimes a German would wonder in what way he came to be related to
that merchant. However, the German farmers highly respected their commercial
prociency. Also highly regarded was the political knowledge of the Jews. At the
bazaar one could hear the latest news.
Whatever happened in St. Petersburg or Moscow was immediately known by
Jews in the Black Sea Area. The terrible pogroms forced them to keep their ears
close to the ground. Relations between the German farmers and the Jewish merchants
were usually cordial, even friendly. It was often in the German villages that the Jews
found refuge during pogroms in rural Russia.
The Russians and Ukrainians brought to the bazaar whatever they had for sale.
The Ukrainian artisans offered a lot of woodwork-wooden spoons, wooden buckets,
wooden forks and shovels-a diversity of woven baskets, and all kinds of brooms.
There was, of course, no strict ethnic limitation of products that people brought to
the bazaar for sale. The bazaar was also a good place to hire help for eldwork and
especially for the harvest.
It is surprising that with all the ethnic conglomeration the bazaars in Katarzhino
and the neighboring villages always turned out peacefully. It is a marvel how well
people understood each other, considering the degree of ethnic diversity. The bazaar
buzzed with business all day long; folk traded, swapped, and haggled, and cheated
one another as best they could. Bargaining was done with lots of swearing, cursing,
begging, and even praying. Only when it was time to pay money, some people tried
hard not to understand, and the whole bargaining process started all over again. But
eventually, when all was said and done, almost everyone went home from a bazaar
well-satised and happy.
Once a year, usually in late August after the grain harvest, the annual fair called
Panayr was celebrated in Katarzhino. In contrast to the weekly bazaar, which took
place every Wednesday, the Panayr was on a Sunday. It was a combination of a
fair and harvest festival. The people from the surrounding villages came en masse
to Katarzhino on that day. The German farmers, especially the youth, took part in
the Panayr with great joy.
The morning of that Sunday went as usual in Neu-Berlin. The ringing of the bells
called the people of the parish to the prayerhouse, and they came from all directions.
They sang inspiring hymns and listened to the sextons reading of the sermon. Some
older farmers took a nap, as usual, during the sermon, waking up when the church
bell rang out the Lords Prayer. Meanwhile the younger lads scanned the pews with
the pretty girls, day- dreaming about the Sunday afternoon dance.
Back home a tasty lunch was waiting for every family. However, already during
lunch a certain excitement started to grow-people ate faster than usual. The dishes
were washed in haste, and in no time the lads had hitched their well-groomed horses
to the wagons. Some fellows even attached red ribbons to the horses, as is done on a
wedding day, just to attract attention. And off they went to the Panayr in Katarzhino.
Every wagon was loaded with eager, happily chattering people. Somewhere between
the legs of the grown-ups the children were hiding and hoping they would not be
thrown off the wagon at the last minute. Everybody, of course, wanted to go to the
Panayr. Halfway to Katarzhino one could already hear the heavy drumbeat, and the
horses responded to the roar with an increased gallop.
In Katarzhino, too, this Sunday started as a peaceful, festive day. First there
was a morning mass in both Orthodox churches, which were lled to capacity by
the local Bulgarians and visiting Russians, Ukrainians, and Moldavians. (After the
mass the priests, with their entourage, went to the square to bless the abundant fruits
of the good earth and hard work on exhibit there. It seemed almost like every bazaar
day, except that everything appeared to be more colorful, bigger, and more beautiful
on that day. All .the vegetables, fruits, and livestock seemed to have a big, inviting
smile for all the people.
The sweet smell of incense was wafted by the priests in all directions. The
faithful in the crowd made the sign of the cross and lamented their Gospodi pomilui
(Lord have mercy) while following the priests around the square.
After the blessing, the native Bulgarians rushed home for a quick lunch, while
visitors headed for the kabak (tavern), or pulled out their Brotsack (brown bag) to
strengthen themselves for the celebration.
A kabak in Russia resembled a saloon of the Old West to a certain degree. One
could order beer, wine, and a charka (glass) of vodka; a lot of vodka! There were
zakuski (hors doeuvres or appetizers) and simple meals, consisting mostly of salted
herrings with pickles and onions. Sometimes there was also caviar. All that made a
thirsty man more thirsty, and so more drinks poured down his throat. Finally, a dish
of good borshch restored the strength of every man. Regardless of their ethnic origin,
all the people-Germans, Jews, Bulgarians, Russians, Ukrainians, Moldavians, and
Gypsies-liked to eat well and to enjoy a hearty drink. As the Germans said, Essen
und trinken halten Leib und Seele zusammen. (Eating and drinking keep body and
soul together). In those days no one worried about calories or cholesterol.
The owner of the tavern in Katarzhino was Yoska, a Jew. No one ever remem-
bered his last name. He was a good businessman. You could see him at the door, with
a friendly smile inviting people to come in, or you could see him walking between the
tables of his establishment, encouraging customers to eat and drink. When business
was going well, one could also see him rubbing his hands with glee, and mentally
already counting his prots for that day. Yes, the Panayr was a protable occasion.
Meanwhile, the people from Neu-Berlin had arrived. The noise got louder, and
everybody was in a hurry to get into the action. With drums beating and trumpets
blaring, all were soon caught up in the general gaiety. The children ran directly to
the merry-go-round, mounted the wooden horses, and took off. The ever-present
boom-boom of the big drums from the dance oors threatened to burst the listen-
ers eardrums.
There were at least three to four open-air dance oors, each one staffed with
a little two- to six-man band, consisting mostly of a. harmoshka (accordion), bala-
laika, guitar, ddle, clarinet, trumpet, tuba, and, of course, the drum. If perhaps they
did not always play perfectly in tune, they certainly played loudly. And the young
people danced happily, mingling together without any ethnic barriers. Germans,
Bulgarians, Jews, Russians, Ukrainians, Moldavians, and Gypsies all whirled around
in big, well-mixed circles. Each of the show-off lads wanted, of course, to dance
also with the black-eyed Gypsy girls wearing the big earrings. Now, that often was
risky, because after the dance, not only did the Gypsy girl disappear, but sometimes
the lads wallet with his last kopek as well. Yelling and screaming did not help-the
Gypsies were masters of disguise, and the big crowd soon swallowed everybody
without a trace.
The older farmers, watching the youth dance happily, would only remark,
154
They are shaking the eas out of the girls skirts!
For the children, the bear leader with his three or four bears was the biggest
attraction. A Gypsy held the bears on a chain and encouraged them with a long
stick to walk around in a circle on their hind legs. The bears danced to the beat of
a tambourine played by a striking, colorfully dressed Gypsy girl with big shining
copper earrings and bracelets. The Gypsy gracefully danced with her tambourine
around the bears; every so often she pushed it under the spectators noses, begging
for a few coins, Be generous, the bears are hungry and would like to eat a good
meal. With a swift motion the girl emptied the tambourine in a big pocket under
her skirt, and the dance of the bears continued. The bear leader addressed his beasts
in a singsong voice in the traditional Russian form.. There was a Maria Petrovna, an
Anna Pavlova, and of course, an Ivan Ivanovich. With the help of the long stick, the
bears demonstrated their art. The children surrounded the dance oor of the beasts in
a wide circle, and every time a bear would roar, they scrambled for their lives behind
the parked wagons and yard fences. But the reassuring beat of the tambourine soon
lured them back to the spectacle.
The children, who rarely received more than 5 or 10 kopeks spending money
from their parents, had to think carefully how to get the most out of it. There were
sweetmeats, candy, cookies, and the big Brezeln (crack-nels), and the ever-cool,
delicious glass of kvass. But a ride on the merry-go-round with its monotonous
music was also very tempting. The little boys, especially, were fond of mounting
the wooden horses and galloping into their dreamland. Yes, it was a problem for
children with little money to make the right choice. Whatever the decision, no child
ever brought any money home from the Panayr.
Meanwhile, spirits in the tavern were rising higher and higher. The empty bottles
disappeared from the tables and full ones took their places. Experienced customers
did not bother with a corkscrew to open a bottle.
The sealing wax was chipped off by knocking it at the edge of the table, then
the bottle was grabbed by its neck with the left hand, and a blow of the right hand
sent the cork (stopper) into orbit with a bang like a shotgun. With a Nazdorovye (to
your health}! the bottle was often passed around the table so that everyone could
immediately have a good swig. No time was wasted pouring into glasses and using
napkins. Often there were none.
One just wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. The strong vodka some-
times drove tears out of the revelers eyes. As the saying went-one glass of vodka
was followed by a second glass, when one began to see things; after the third glass
one saw double. after the fourth glass the tongue began to stumble, after the fth
glass the drinkers started to fall under the table, and after that no one was able to
continue the count anyway.
At the plaza in front of the tavern more and more people were gathering. One
of the main attractions during the Panayr was the wrestling match between the teams
of Katarzhino and Kubanka. Katarzhino was famous for its wrestlers, reputed to
be the best in all Tsebrikovo County. Each of the two villages mustered a ten-man
team for that event. The wrestlers took off their shirts and exposed the upper part
of the body. An attempt was made to pair the wrestlers by size and age. There was
no weigh-in or any other restrictive rules, nor was there an ofcial or a referee. The
crowd participated actively by cheering or booing, and so helped decide who was the
winner. Once a wrestler was at on the ground, he had lost. The village with the most
victories was declared the winner. There was also private betting, and the winner of
a bet immediately went to Yoskas tavern to celebrate the victory.
After the so-called ofcial wrestling match, many Bulgarians challenged the
surrounding spectators of Germans, Ukrainians, Russians, and Moldavians to a
friendly wrestling match, offering 25 to 50 kopeks to the winner.
The Germans of Neu-Berlin had a lot of respect for the wrestlers of Katarzhino,
for whom wrestling was a kind of national sport, and hesitated at rst to take on a
Bulgarian. However, with some persuasion, pushing, and shoving from the surround-
ing spectators, the rst German from Neu-Berlin soon was in the wrestling ring. The
Germans were generally bigger and built stronger than the shorter Bulgarians, but
the Bulgarians were usually more agile and experienced. The wrestlers grabbed each
other around the waist, and each tried to throw his opponent to the ground. The mob
enjoyed this, gave a lot of free advice, and urged on their favorites. Throw the son
of a gun into the dust! Show him what you can do!
The guy is just a noodle Some yelled until they got hoarse. Time and again
the quick Bulgarians got out of the trap and their opponents landed on the ground.
As soon as one hit the dust of the street, the crowd paid homage to the victor with a
deafening roar and loud applause. Every time a heavy German hit the ground, one
could feel a slight tremor across the plaza.
The wrestling skill of the Bulgarians was apparent-they threw most of the
Germans, Russians, Ukrainians, and Moldavians in the dust. That led to complaints
and arguments. The Germans, especially, got hot under the collar, accusing the Bul-
garians of cheating and using inadmissible tricks. Later on, no one could remember
who rst used a st in the argument. But suddenly a free-for-all ght was on. The
Germans clobbered the Bulgarians, who gamely fought back. This created sudden
confusion among the other ethnic groups. First the Ukrainian farmhands were at a
loss, but when they saw that their German khozyain (landlord) was in trouble, they
rushed to his side to help him with their sts.
The Moldavians were no less confused, they had friends on both sides. So
they fought on both sides, helping the Germans and the Bulgarians, and one could
often see one Moldavian beating the hell out of another Moldavian. The Jews did
not want to have any part of the beef and disappeared quickly from the battleeld;
it reminded them too much of the pogroms. The Gypsies were all smiles-what a
golden opportunity to clean out the pockets of the brawlers and the surrounding
spectators-and they worked feverishly.
The people from Neu-Berlin now came running from all sides to help their
brethren. When the Schultze, who was sitting at the big table in the tavern with a
glass in his hand and listening to the ribald jokes of his companions, heard of the
ght, he jumped to his feet, turned the table upside down, and yelled, Wir milssem
unseren helfen! (we have to help our boys), and out he went. The others followed
him, kicking the chairs and tables into the corners. Yoska screamed, Bozhe moil
(My God), the Goyim (gentiles) have gone meshuge (crazy) in their heads! GeWaUt!
It is worse than a pogrom! And quickly, with the help of his hired hands, he pushed
his customers out. Then he hurried to board up the windows of his tavern, but he
was too late to save one window through which a big rock had already sailed with
a loud crash.
The Schultze, a giant of a man, stormed out roaring like a bear. He grabbed
the rst Bulgarian he met, and with the help of a friend, threw him on the roof of
the porch in front of the tavern. Yoska could only shake his head in disbelief. In no
time the Schultze was in the middle of the brawl, and propelled his punches in all
directions, each one accompanied by a salty oath. The Germans had developed heavy
sts from the hard eldwork, and each punch was like being hit by a sledgehammer.
Many Bulgarians rolled into the street dust and saw the sparkling stars in the sky
in broad daylight. The Germans got the upper hand in the st ght with the help of
their hired hands. There were, of course, no set rules in this brawl; however, it was
considered that if one did bite the dust and was about ready for his last confession,
to leave him in peace. But then again everybody had his own idea of fairness, and
some thought a last kick in the guys butt would be appropriate. After all, this was a
once-a-year opportunity and the man might remember him until the next Panayr.
The Bulgarians got more and more in trouble and started to yell for help. When
the boys from Katarzhino, who were sitting around on the fences, saw their com-
patriots need for help, they took off along the streets yelling, Help! The German
Busunnans (non-Orthodox) are killing our people! Help! And the natives responded
quickly. Armed with sticks, shovels, pitchforks, and even wagon shafts, they rushed
from all directions toward the plaza. When the Schultze saw that he was about to be
rammed by a wagon shaft, he yelled, Anyone who wants to stay alive run for our
wagons! The words of the Schultze were an order. The Germans dropped the ght
and their men, women, boys, and girls, as well as their Ukrainian hired hands, ran
for the wagons. The girls ran from the dance oors holding their long skirts high
above the waist, and it was a shame that the young men had no time to admire the
lasses shapely white legs. The horses were hitched in no time, and the wagons, fully
loaded, took off with lightning speed at the crack of the whip.
The Bulgarians accompanied the Germans hasty departure with all kinds of
insults, cursing, and mockery. A popular proverb was:
Nemets perets kolbasa
A German pepper sausage
kupil konya bez khvosta
bought a tailless horse
Khvost oborvaLrya
The horse had lost its tail
I nemets obosraLrya.
And the German soiled his pants.
The Germans acknowledged those compliments with their own Donnerwetters
and a lot more. The people from Neu-Berlin would not admit that they had to run
away from the Panayr. On the contrary, the spirited ones would insist that the drive
home was a wagon race. Indeed, it was a race. The dirt road was hardly wide enough
for one wagon; now suddenly there were four or more wagons abreast ghting for the
best spot, running helter-skelter for .home. With the cracking of the whip and a lot
of yelling, the wagons, it seemed, were ying with their wheels hardly touching the
ground. Sometimes a wagon would sideswipe another, a wheel would take off on- a
tangent into outer space, and the wagon would land in the drainage ditch along the
road. There were also broken wagon shafts. The damaged wagons were, of course,
out of the race and had to be towed slowly to the village, to the great disappointment
of their driver and passengers.
When the racing wagons had gone about halfway, the people in Neu- Berlin
could see the big dust cloud, like a hurricane, and hear the yelling and roaring coming
from the south. Somebody hollered, Sakes alive! Get off the street! The crazy ones
are coming from the Panayrf It needed no repetition. All rushed into their yards
behind protective fences, trees, or summer kitchen windows to watch. Even the lazy
dogs, who spent the afternoon napping in the hot street dust got up, pulled their tails
between their hind legs, and ran to a safe place in the yard. Chickens scratching for
grains in the street got the message too, and uttering their wings awkwardly and
cackling loudly ran for the safety of their coops. The street was cleared, and none
too soon, because the rst wagon of the racers already rattled into the south end of
the village. The driver did not go straight to his house, but raced through the whole
village to make sure everyone saw who the winner was. The other wagons drove
immediately into their yards; no one wanted to be a loser in a wagon race.
That night the people of Neu-Berlin talked a long time about their adventures at
the Panayr. Well, some boasted of having single-handedly beaten up scores of Bulgar-
ians. One was not exactly modest in telling tales of his exploits. It was the same .in
Katarzhino. Men, the Germans ran like jackrabbits when we kicked them out!
155
Well, it is sometimes not so good to listen to both sides of the story.
The Ukrainians slept well that night after all the excitement and the great amount
of vodka they had consumed that day. The Moldavians were wondering through the
whole night how in the world they had gotten into that brawl. After all, they had
good friends on both sides. The Gypsies were happily satised at the campre under
the full harvest moon that night when they counted the money lifted from pockets
of ghters, brawlers, and spectators alike. The Panayr had been a protable day
for them. The Jews were convinced that the gentiles had gone crazy that day, but
otherwise they enjoyed the celebration very much. Even Yoska had a big smile on
his face when he felt with his head the big money bag under his pillow. GewaUtfIt
had been a good day for business, if one didnt count the broken window and the
broken chairs in the kabak.
It seems that everyone was well satised, happy, and content the night after
the Panayr. It had been an eventful day, a day to remember for all.
The next morning was a different story. Just getting out of bed was already an
ordeal for most of the fairgoers.
One suddenly felt pain in muscles and bones that he never would have guessed
existed in his body. Then that rst walk to the outhouse-it seemed to be a mile away.
Some lads did not make it on the rst attempt, because their stomachs worked in
both directions that day: up and down, but mostly up. And the tall for breakfast
started it all over again.
Then came the Russian and Ukrainian hired hands with tremendous hangovers,
begging their German khozyain (landlord) for a drink so they could sober up.
Pan, they would whine. The head, the head, she is ringing like a church
bell-boom, oi! How it hurts, boom ...please give us a shot of vodka to sober up or
we will die!
The farmer would rst try scolding them, Why, you good-for-nothings, why
did you not think about dying yesterday when you poured the vodka into your bot-
tomless pit? But when he looked into those blank faces with
glassy eyes, he just shook his head. There was nothing else he could do but
run to the kitchen and pull a bottle of vodka out from a hidden corner in the cabinet.
Then he let everybody have a sip so they could face the world again without dying. In
Russia, vodka was the panacea for all internal, external, and emotional illnesses.
There was not much eldwork done on that Monday. Almost everyone was
recovering from the Panayr. Even the Schultze (mayor), who went to the Kanzlei
(village ofce) every morning to check if the scribe had overslept, was not in the
mood to demonstrate his authority that day. Instead, he hitched up his horses and
drove to the eld for some fresh air and to avoid any curious villagers. Viewing
the landscape of the steppe, with the green grass and golden wheat waving like. an
endless sea from horizon to horizon, always brought peace and tranquility to the
troubled mind of the Schultze.
But time moves on and heals, everything. Next Wednesday the bazaar in Katar-
zhino was going on again, as always. They were all here again-the Germans with
their grain, butter, and eggs; the Bulgarians with their sheep, wool, and vegetables;
the Moldavians with their fruits; the Gypsies with their horses and fortune-tellers; the
Russians and Ukrainians with their brooms and wooden spoons; and the Jews with
their tents loaded with fabrics and household wares. At the door to the kabak was the
ever-present Yoska inviting people to have a good mogorych (drink). Everybody saw
the new window in the tavern, of course. But Yoska only smiled; the main
thing was that his customers had not forgotten him and came again en
masse.
Sometimes the two antagonists from the Panayr ran into each other at that
Wednesday bazaar. Well, the best thing was to ignore the incident, look the other
direction, and act as if one had never seen the person before. But it was always a
pleasure to notice that the other guy had a black eye, too.
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DIFFICULTIES AMIDST STALINISM:
1929
MY EXPERIENCE LIVING IN THE SOVIET UNION
Helen Dmitriew AHSGR CONVENTION
It is a great privilege to speak to such a distinguished audience. My name is
Helen Omitriew. I am a retired professor of Russian at California State University,
Fresno. I was born in Russia.
Russians at that time had experienced tremendous difculties. The War of
1914, Bolsheviks, the Revolution of 1917, civil war. Millions of Russian people
were killed; starvation, political division among the people, and hostility reigned in
Russia when the Bolsheviks came to power. Terror and deaths of innocent people
were happening everywhere.
Lenin saw the end of Bolshevik power, and, in 1924, introduced a new plan
called NEP (New Economic Plan). That same year he died. Stalin came to power.
In 1929 he put an end to that policy. Millions of innocent people lost their lives
during that time.
In 1929 my family was arrested by Soviet authorities and, like thousands and
thousands of people, was sent to exile in Siberia. We were exiled because my father
was unable to pay the enormous tax assessed. The Soviets intended to liquidate their
best people with these enormous taxes. Many hard-working, good, and innocent
people found their deaths.
In our group of prisoners, there were about 350 children. In one year, after
different epidemics, there were only eight children alive. It is a miracle of God my
parents and I survived all the hardships. Both my parents were sick for eight months
in absolutely inhuman conditions, in extremely cold barracks without food. My
mother lost her left arm, her teeth, and her hair. She had been a most beautiful
woman before.
In the city of Prokopjevsh, people were dying like ies. There was a German
and Czechoslovakian colony, whose people were deceived by the Soviets. Mostly
they were engineers, whom the Soviets needed very badly at that time because their
own had been killed or put into jail. I was able to get pieces of bread or soup from
them in order to give it to my sick parents. They had special stores and were sup-
plied with all the necessities.
When only a few prisoners survived, my sick father decided to escape. My
mother and I encouraged him to do that, since there was very slim chance to survive
[in the camp], and he left.
A few months later, my sick mother and I also made the decision to try our
luck. We escaped under the barbed wire. My mother was a complete invalid. We
went on the road, having it in mind that at any time we could be stopped and arrested
by Soviet authorities.
With swollen feet and being very sick, we both walked on, unaware of our
nal destination. It took us a year until we reached the place where my brother
lived. Within two weeks my brother was arrested by the Soviets for hiding his so-
cial origin. Life for the entire family was absolutely impossible, but God and good
people helped us survive.
I was hiding my social past, declaring myself as an orphan and pursuing my
education. In 1939 I started teaching. In 1940 I married my rst husband, who was
a teacher of mathematics and physics and also academic vice-president of a Russian
secondary school. The war started in June of 1941, and in November 1941 he was
mortally wounded by drunk German soldiers. On the fth day he died in my arms.
My daughter was born in January, after his death.
It is difcult to describe what I went through, impossible, in a short time, to
say all that I experienced, but God gave me strength, and I was able to endure all
suffering, all impossible odds, and I survived.
In 1943 I was taken to Germany like millions of young people from the oc-
cupied regions. I worked fteen to seventeen hours a day on a farm in Bavaria. In
1945, after the German capitulation, I married my second husband. Life was very
hard, but, since I was a teacher at heart, I organized a Russian school in the DP camp
and worked there for four and one-half years.
We immigrated to Canada on a contract for eld work on sugar beet farms. In
Canada I met some Germans from Russia.
After fourteen years of work in a sewing factory, I started evening classes at
the University of Manitoba. It was very hard, but I succeeded an d went to summer
school at Middlebury College in Vermont, and, a year later, I went to the University
of Iowa. I nished my masters degree in three semesters. Upon completion of the
degree, I received four offers from different universities, and I chose Fresno (1967).
During my studies at the University of Iowa, I was also a teaching assistant. After
graduation I taught one semester as an instructor at the University of Iowa. My
husband and my daughter joined me in Fresno after three and one-half years of
separation. I worked twenty-six years at
this university and retired in 1992. In 1980
my husband died.
I have published a book called Sur-
viving the Storms: Memory of Stalins Tyr-
anny. In this book I describe all the horrors
which I experienced in my life.
Now I am working on my second
book. It is about the former Soviet Union
and the United States. Contemporary peo-
ple in Russia are very nervous about their
future. The death rate is rising much faster
than that of any other country. Russia faces
a population crisis. Deaths exceeded .births
by nearly 800,000 last year. If the trend
continues, the countrys population will
shrink sharply in the coming years, which
demonstrates that the society is in a crisis.
It shows a lack of public health awareness.
An epidemic of alcohol abuse is partly to
blame, as is environmental pollution.
This grim picture of new birth and
death statistics can be attributed to the
bleak reality of Russia. Infant mortality
rates have risen for years, and the high rate
of abortions leave many unable to have
children. Antibiotics are in short supply,
and the nations hospital system lacks most
important supplies.
Soviet statistics were inaccurate all
of the time. But specialists cannot explain
such a huge drop in life expectancy. Poor
conditions of life, shortage of the most
156
important things-that can explain such a situation. The suicide rate has risen sharply
over the last two years and now represents almost one third of unnatural deaths.
The struggle for power that one can see today in Russia is quite complex.
Some so-called leaders are out of touch with people who want peaceful relations
with the rest of the world.
I enjoy every moment of living in this country because I understand and
appreciate the great value of freedom. Freedom is the most precious thing in life.
One Russian writer, Pashin, wrote a short story with the title Taiga. He describes
a woman who escaped from a Soviet concentration camp and ran through deep
snow in the taiga. She was followed by Soviet guards, and before they reached
her (she was hiding in the little hut of the forest man), she took his rie and killed
herself. She left a short note. I quote: There is nothing more precious in life than
freedom itself. How very true it is. Americans do not know what kind of life can
be in non-freedom.
In my book I wrote: One of my personal characteristics is that I never com-
plain. I have always believed that there is a way out of any difcult situation, and
no work, be it physical or mental, has ever frightened me.
I lost my parents long ago, but have maintained indelible memories of them
and their suffering. As a result, whenever I meet elderly or helpless people, I am
always the rst to extend. a helping hand. Older people prepared the ground for our
life, and we should never forget that. Without the past, there can be no present, and
without the present, there can be no future. Such is my outlook on life.
Faith in God is the force that saved me from death in Siberia and eased my
spiritual torments. To serve those near to us is to serve God. I am happy to live in a
country where the word God is not forbidden.
Americans do not know what kind of life can be in non-freedom. I pray to God
in gratitude for living here in this country. May God bless you all and give peace
and prosperity to our country America.
Ron located the Schutz name in Bessarabia while searching for the name in
computer at one of the AGHR conventions. Shutz in South Dakota appeared to have
connections in Bessarabia.
Ron could not determine if they were related to our Schutz.
Bessarabian Germans were spared some of the misfortunes of other Germans
in Russia (at rst) and were directed to vacate their homes and travel west. From
this time on, they suffered considerable. Ron has a record of one such Bessarabian
Schutz family and their experiences.
1945 Exile To Some, A New Home to Others! By Michael Wanner
240,000 repatriated Russia-Germans from Germany to the high north of
Siberia and Kazhakstan. They had tears in their eyes and were desperate in their
suffering.
Back then they had no idea that years later their children and some of their
own ranks even would return to Germany, again with tears in their eyes, but
already lled with the hope of a new beginning.
Russia had already refused to acknowledge the repatriation of 280 to
300,000 Germans from the Black Sea at conference of Potsdam and forcefully
took them back to Russia. Stalin in return reduced Germanys war debt by 100-
dollars bounty per Russian-German. Naturally, these people coming from that
damned Germany were not made welcome and were housed in barns, ware-
houses or tents. Many of the very young and the elderly succumbed to starvation,
cold, hard labor and diseases. It took a long while before people had enough food
to eat, a fun-lled visit or music in their homes again.
At the beginning of the fties, especially after the death of Stalin, it became
feasible to petition the command posts to release family members or relatives to
bring families back together again. These were often hopelessly ill people, who
came back to their families to die. As time passed, more and
more Germans found each other in the villages of Northern Kazhakstan.
After obtaining freedom from the commanders, supervision and with the possibili-
ties to freely choose their places of residence in the east, soon there were villages
again with a predominant German population. Thus it was also with Kubanka near
Zelinograd, or as it is now called, Astana, the current capital of Kasakhstan.
The village itself had been started in 1934 by exiled Kulaks from the area
of Kuban and the rst Germans arrived there after the war ended. Many even
had originally come from the village Neuhoffnung (New Hope) near Berdjansk
on the Black Sea. Compared to many other villages where our fellow country-
men were taken by force during and after the war, the repatriated Germans of
Kubanka had a relatively easier beginning there, since the administrator of the
Kolchose there was a reasonable man. He was Korean with the name of Kann
De Khan and he himself had found out what exile or forced resettlement meant.
The Korean national group had already been settled in Kazakhstan and dispersed
allover the Soviet Union from 1937 on, when they were taken from their Pacic
Ocean homeland of the Far East. At the age of 32 Kann De Khan was a very
young administrator of a Kolchose and he served from 1944-1976. Thanks to his
diligence and foresight, as well as care of the residents, the settlement soon began
to prosper as a modern village, which became exemplary for Kazakhstan and the
entire Soviet Union.
In 1956 there were already 3,416 residents living there and 670 of them
were Germans. After the liberation from the commanders supervision, 462
Chechens from Kubanka returned to their Caucasian homeland again. The Ger-
mans had to stay and became the largest national group of the village. By 1959
Kubanka had 3,821 people of 24 different nationalities.
After the rehabilitation of the Germans in 1964, the population of Kubanka
was diminished again, since many tried to return to their home villages in the
Ukraine, the Caucasus, Crimea or the Volga regions. Some settled in central Asia,
others went on to Moldavia Of the Baltics in the hope of eventually being given
the freedom to leave the country. In 1989, Kubanka still had a population of 2,290
and 863 of them were German. Between 1989 and 1999 about 800 Germans
left their village and moved to Germany. Farewells were hard, as for many it
was a good-bye to their childhood and youth, and that should not be forgotten.
Therefore, at their second meeting (12 December 1997 and again 27 November
2000,) 300 fellow countrymen met in Regensburg, where they exchanged their
memories.
Historische Forschungsverein der Deutschen aus Russland e. V. Prepared
by Historische Forschungsverein der Deutschen aus Russland e. V. (Historical
Research Association of the Germans from Russia, e. V.), Nurenberg, Germany.
From A Speech By Dr. Johann Windholz Translated By Jo Ann
Kuhr At The 1994 AHSGR Convention. Also Reprinted In AHSGR
Journal Fall 1994.
They say since the Germans left Germany they have never settled
down in one spot. One scholar said in the middle of the preceding century,
They left their home out of a desire to wander. But one of the colonists
along the Volga wrote in a letter in 1818, If we had not left Germany, we
would all have starved to death. And yet it seems that the Germans from
Russia of all generations are punished because their forefathers left their
homeland. They even left their homeland in the second half of the preced-
ing century; those are your forefathers who came to America, Harassment
of the Germans began in the second half of the preceding century. They
were accused of forming a second German state, a German state in Rus-
sia. [The accusations] were the strongest and worst in the war years 1914
and later. At the end of 1915, Tsar Nicholas II issued an edict to drive the
Germans from Volhynia. A well-known folk singer, Johannes Rollheiser,
sang this song:
Und der Kaiser Nikalaie hat befohlen in ganzem Land Alle Deutschen aus-
zutreiben, wo wir einst so friedlich stand.
And Tsar Nicholas commanded throughout the land All Germans should be
driven out, from where we once lived so peacefully.
After the Revolution, many Russian Germans went abroad, again to America
and to other countries. The best workers-the farmers, the estate owners, who made
bread for Russia and fed Russia in the most difcult times-were dispossessed and all
sent to Kazakhstan. Karaganda, Siberia, Arkhangelsk in the north. Once again the
best were all shot during the years of repression, 1937-1938. Then came 1941. One
can sing many songs about this year. [Here is] one song:
Neunzehnhunderteinundvierzig war fur uns ein schweres Jahr:Viele Deutsche
sind verhungert und verfroren, das ist wahr.
Nineteen hundred forty-one was a hard year for us. Many Germans starved to
death, froze to death, that is true.
Once again two million Russian Germans were banned to the east. One quarter
of them froze to death, starved to death. They worked in the cold north cutting down
trees; they worked in coal mines. And the people said it was for a patriotic victory. A
poet now living in Karaganda was sent to a camp with a group of 2000. That was in
October. In March there were two left. After the war everyone hoped things would
get better. Then an edict was issued, and every German was given notice that he
was permanently located in that place, that he was not to leave, and if he did, then
he would be sen-tenced to twenty years prison. Then Stalin died, father of the
peoples of the Soviet Union. At that time the Russian.Germans began to look for
one another. My father was .in the north, ~ear Sverdlovsk. We were in Kazakhstan
near Kustanai. For two years he looked for us, his wife and his children, until we
could move to Karaganda in 1947. A few years ago a man was ~ding in a train. A
woman said, You seem so familiar to me, I have a neighbor who looks like you. It
turned out it was his brother, who lived in the neighboring district, but for fty years
they had not seen each other. One could write a book about every Russian German,
a large book with tears and blood. Today we sing another song, which was written in
1990: Die Ausreis von Rubland fallt mir nicht schwer. Denn alles ist verloren, keine
Hoffnung nicht mehr.
Leaving Russia is not hard for me.
Everything is lost, there is no more hope.
The Russian Germans are moving again. I have arranged some data. The new
wave of emigration began in 1954. Those were the rst 18 people. By 1960 the number
had climbed to 5000, but that was too many. Emigration was stopped and the number
sank to 300. After 1970 things loosened up, and by 1980 the number of emigrants
had climbed often as high as 9000 per year. That was again too many, and by 1985
that had again been slowed to 460. Then peristroika came, Gorbachev, freedom, a
time of rosy hopes. And the number of emigrants has now climbed year after year. In
1987-14,000; then 47,000; then 98,000; then 147,000. In 1992 there were 195,000
emigrants from the former Soviet Union. [There was a total of 230,565 immigrants
from all of Eastern Europe.-Translator]
Now it became too many for Germany. They tried-and are still trying-in every
way to slow and stop the immigration. Social welfare has become less, the possibili-
ties of learning the language have become fewer. The problems of the unication of
Germany, Berlin, the capital of Germany, have brought great problems for Germany.
An Aussiedler is a persona non grata. Nevertheless, last year there were 208,000
immigrants to Germany from the Soviet Union. [94,050 Germans had emigrated
from the former Soviet Union to Germany by the end of June 1994. This number
compares to 85,436 for the same six months in 1993.-Translator] In 1993 there were
6,000 fewer applications to move to Germany. Many who have received permission
157
do not emigrate. And now something new has developed. This year there were 1,500
applications to the German government to move back to Russia. In Germany they do
not want us; in Russia one cannot live.
Two years ago it was said in Middle Asia that all whites would be driven out.
The Russians would be killed, the Germans would be enslaved. Perhaps that is exag-
gerated, but the people are being driven out. They are leaving the Asiatic republics and
Kazakhstan by the hundreds of thousands and going to Russia. Approximate gures
for 1992 indicate fty thousand left for Russia and settled there. Now they are trying
to help the people. In 1993, 22,000 Germans from Kazakhstan and Middle Asia have
been admitted into Russia and helped with apartments. There are programs for settling
the Germans in Asia. Germany has given 50 million German marks for this work.
Russia has also helped for the rst time, and in 1993 they gave 5-1/2 billion rubles.
Yesterday I showed you a container settlement. Last year 202,500 such containers
were built in Russia. Now they are attempting to develop larger programs, and eight
new settlements will be built. In Omsk, 200 houses are being built; in Volgograd 250;
in Saratov 200; in Ulyanovsk 157. They are now trying to nd new ways to organize
the Russian Germans. Programs are being developed for the Volga Region, for Siberia,
for Tambov, for St. Petersburg.
It is very difcult and, as always, the Russian Germans have to do it themselves,
they have to ght for themselves. It has been proven that we cannot rely on any help.
One has to ght for oneself and organize oneself. We have left the purely political path
and are now trying to organize on an economic basis. We are developing new organiza-
tions, new Russian-German rms. In the Volga Region, the Association of the Volga
Germans has twelve rms, and every rm is building houses. It seems the beginning
has been made, and Russia sees that the money one gives the Germans is used
positively. One talks about the organization of a society, a Volga development.
They are organizing similar business entities in Moscow, in St. Petersburg, in Tombov,
and in Siberia. We have no way out; we must rise again.
Then there is the question, do the Russian-German people-I am speaking of
Russia-have a future or not? Seven hundred-fty thousand have left Russia and
just as many applications are still in Germany. It seems, however, that a rather large
number of Russian Germans are remaining in Russia. Which way should they go is
the question. We think that today we have to support and organize every emigration
from Middle Asia and Kazakhstan. Where the settlements are being developed, where
the work progresses p.ositively, there one has to begin the work anew.
The organization committee of the rst Congress of Russian Germans has
developed a system of self-administration of the Russian Germans without their own
land and without their own government. Today this idea has a positive response in
the Russian government and in all areas of our lives. Deputies are to be elected to
the parliament. A type of government without land is to be developed. A new type of
parliament of the Russian Germans
is to be elected in order to discuss and solve their problems. There is a great
lack of German teachers, of specialized people in the areas of culture and research.
Therefore it is urgently necessary to establish a university for Russian Germans and,
perhaps, for Russian Germans throughout the whole world.
This idea has been discussed, but it is very difcult to develop. In my opinion,
the problem of relearning the language is solvable. Russia has now become an open
country, to the west, to the south, and to the east. Everyone must know foreign lan-
guages-the English language, the German language, and others. Now we all have
relatives in Germany through these 750,000 who have emigrated. We have constant
contact with Germany. We adults and our children go to Germany, and our relatives
come from Germany to Russia. We need our German language for communication,
and we are learning it. In the future, if one can say that, we need to develop a research
institute where one can gather, research, publish the works, art works, songs, and
much more and give them back to the people to achieve new popularity in Russia.
A cooperative venture with the Russian Germans throughout the world is absolutely
necessary, and it is a burning and urgent question. All of you who have spoken with
me understand this. All researchers who have spoken to me are of this opinion; we
must work together in order to make progress.
Today I did not want to make you sad with my lecture. I am of the opinion, and
I hope, that we have a future if and when we create this future ourselves.
I invite you all to Russia. Look and see how we live, how things are with us.
If you want to help us, then do that. We no longer stand with empty hands. We have
preserved much of the wealth of songs, of cultural objects. We are still one people
and can inspire and be of help to one another. I have spent some wonderful days of
my life at your gathering. I am very content. I have met our people who are like us,
who have shared our fate. We have a com-mon fate and we must be together. I thank
you very much for the invitation, I thank you very much for your help. I thank you
very much for your moral and practical support. Thank you.
1949 Germans Homeward Bound
Following World War II, when the Bundesrepublik of West Germany went
into effect in 1949, the new basic law (for they still do not have a constitution) said
that ethnic Germans wherever they live have the right to come home and settle in
the space governed by this new Basic Law of West Germany (now all of Germany).
Theoretically this means all Germans everywhere, including you and me, and taking
in all those who had ever been associated with what was vaguely Germany. All the
Germans in Russia qualify. These left as long ago as 1763 during the reign of Cath-
erine the Great. But for all time or until the Basic Law is changed, Germans in Russia
158
will continue to have the right to come back to Germany. This right also extends to
all the so called Siebenburg Sachsen who have lived in Romania since roughly the
12th century. A great many of them have already come home and it is likely that the
remaining approximately 300,000 will be coming back to Germany soon.
Because this law was in effect since veritably the end of World War II, at least
15 million Germans from Eastern Europe, legally expelled from the nations in which
they enjoyed full citizenship by right of birth, found homes in what in 1949 became
West Germany. By some strange twist of logic on the part of the Allies, the ethnic
Germans in the East were held more responsible for the atrocities of the Nazi gov-
ernment than were the people living in Germany proper and holding Nazi German
citizenship. Therefore President Harry Truman, representing the United States at the
Potsdam Conference, agreed to this wholesale transfer of ethnic Germans.
Almost all of them were expelled from the Banat, current day Yugoslavia
-technically Vojvodina, and portions of Hungary and Romania. Not as many left
Romania, but as mentioned they will be coming home in the next year or so. Large
numbers departed from Hungary, and all of them withdrew out of Czechoslovakia,
about 3.5 million in all, from what was once the controversial Sudetenland. Millions
left Poland, mostly from territories which were legitimately German when the peoples
themselves were born. Therefore the Germans from the current-day Polish occupied
territories of Germany enjoyed full German citizenship at the time of their migration.
After all, the region was being ceded to Poland only until the time when a treaty
would be signed. None ever was, nor is one likely ever to be signed between the
Allies and Germany nalizing World War II. In this transfer, of course, all Germans
were driven out of East Prussia, that northeastern province which formerly bordered
Russia (more specically Lithuania} and Poland. East Prussia was ceded in two parts,
the southern half to Poland and the northern half in perpetuity to the Soviet Union.
To the Stalinist mind-set, the ancient capital city of Prussia, Konigsberg, was to be
expunged from the face of the earth in the belief that in so doing, the Soviets would
rid the world of Prussianism, more specically of militarism, for all time to come!
The city was promptly renamed Kaliningrad.
Soviet Germans in Russia
We have to bear in mind that some two million ethnic Germans were living
in the Soviet Union at the outbreak of World War II and were transferred in the fall
of 1941 to Siberia, although most of them subsequently moved southward into the
province of Kazakhstan. The estimated number of Germans living in the Soviet Union
today (1990) is three million. During the 1920s, those Germans living in the Volga
region of the Soviet Union had their own Soviet Socialist Republic, something like
Latvia, Lithuania, Georgia, Azerbaijan and others that are now breaking away now
have or desire. If this German republic had not been dissolved by Stalin following
the German invasion of Russia in 1941, then perhaps today they too would be seek-
ing to set up their own independent nation.
In several recent newspaper articles, the number of Aussiedler Germans ex-
pected to leave the Soviet Union in 1991 has been put at 400,000. From the time
perestroika was initiated in the Soviet Union about ve years ago, a total of over
300,000 Soviet Germans have already come to West Germany and these in turn are
encouraging those left behind to immigrate.
It is the generous treatment of the Aussiedler from the Soviet Union that
has on the one hand induced them to leave Russia for a better life in the ancestral
homeland. But on the other, these benets are the root cause why virtually none of
the expatriates from the Soviet Union bother to come to the United States. While
America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the apple of every Russian
emigrants eye, today the U. S. has little to offer such a newcomer. Whereas at least
100,000 Germans from Russia came to the United States between 1874 and 1920,
only a few dozen have come since World War II.
Resentful remarks about the Haidacher come from local residents who have
always lived there. The saying goes about the Russian Germans: after four weeks
a TV set, after four months a Mercedes, and after four years a house. According to
local observers, the results are not that the Russian Germans get all that much money
from the state, but that the Soviet Germans are willing to work till they drop. With
sts of iron they hang on to their money with the strength to crack welding seams,
and with the loyalty of Sicilian mobsters.
For the most part the Soviet Germans who come to Germany are between 30
and 40 years old. Generally, they arrive in families, not as individuals. Frequently,
they belong to one specic religion, and not uncommonly, they are members of
a sect. Likewise, they arrive with less than an adequate education. Indeed, 65%
of them belong to the lower working classes for which no formal education was
mandatory. Less than 15% of them have achieved entry to any of the professions.
Overwhelmingly, back in the Soviet Union they were farmers who worked on large
collectives.
The Demarcation Date of 1941
The Spataussiedler also divide up cleanly according to place of birth with
reference to the year 1941. In the Russian census of 1926, 90% of Germans in Russia
lived in the European part of Russia. In the 1970 census, only 17% of the Germans
were still in European Russia. Among the recent newcomers to Germany, 94% of
those born before 1941 came from European Russia, whereas for those born after
1941 only 6% come from the former provinces on the Volga and the Black Sea.
Fully 48% come from Kazakhstan. The rest arrive from other provinces including
Siberia. It can be assumed that those who report a European site from which they
had recently emigrated, were in this European location only for a short time, coming
in reality also from the Asian parts of the Soviet Union.
Discrimination against the Germans surprisingly was rarely given as a motive
for leaving. Many even felt that the Soviet bureaucrats held them in high esteem
as diligent workers, yet most noticed that they were not accepted on an equal social
basis with their neighboring Soviets. All of those questioned thought of themselves
as superior in their work, orderliness, and cleanliness in everyday life especially
housing, when compared to Slavs and other Soviet nationalities. Most farm workers
believed that the Kazakhstan kolkhozes (state farms) on which they worked performed
better than the average Soviet farms due to the presence among the laborers of many
ethnic Germans.
Many coincidental details also surfaced from the interviews.19 While retail
trade was satisfactory in the central farm settlements, the local stores offered only
basic commodities such as salt, bread, sugar and working clothes. Otherwise people
had to travel to cities to do their shopping and transportation was often found want-
ing. Everywhere respondents pointed to a striking lack of meat. Typically in these
rural farm colonies, families lived in a one-family house, privately-owned. Such
a dwelling consisted of a kitchen plus two or three rooms, with a cellar dug in the
backyard for storing food, along with a summer kitchen out back for cooking. The
normal size of their main abode was about 550 square feet. Livestock shelters, unlike
in Germany, consisted entirely of separate out-buildings and sheds. If not bought
from a previous owner, a primary residence would be built by the family with help
from relatives, friends and neighbors, who received no pay except food and drink
during their days on the job. Materials were often difcult to come by, but a tip here
or a bribe there, perhaps just some eggs or a rind of smoked meat usually sufced
to procure what was needed. The typical house on central Asian farms is still built
of clay. Brick or cement block as well as logs have made minor inroads. Costs range
up to 15,000 rubles per homestead.
Making Do, Down on the Farm
As to the pros and cons of Soviet German life within the subdivisions of
agricultural work, the following results emerged. Working with livestock required
more hours per day and more days per year but also yielded a higher income than
did manual eld work. However, there were .great differences among comparable
jobs, such as machinery operator versus herdsman. Being a eld hand also had its
privileges! Most mentioned the opportunity to take home grain from the eld for
ones private animals. For that matter, herdsmen could likewise appropriate enough
milk for the family. All agreed that personal connections and some form of bribery
are an intrinsic part of Soviet rural life. Most famous as a bribe is the pollitr (half
liter of vodka) although money and the above mentioned farm articles are always
acceptable and effective.
Many reports indicate that over-reporting of output on the farm was common
though under-reporting also served a purpose. Most agreed that this technique allowed
for illegally selling extra produce while others suggest that the under-reported yields
were allocated by managers so that there would be enough to feed the privately-
owned animals of the workers. At any rate, Soviet agricultural statistics seem to be
considerably distorted through the complicated process of reporting methods. Nearly
unanimous were the narrations that central management made all the decisions.
Machinery personnel like manual workers only obey orders.
Families with children can save no money. A majority of those questioned as-
serted that the agricultural private plot is indispensable for the Soviet food supply.
All people on the farms have one of the private plots and privately-owned animals.
Most however say that getting enough feed for these animals in legal ways would
be impossible. Hay for cattle in winter is especially difcult which explains why so
many prefer keeping hogs because hogs can always use the plentiful bread supplies
for feed if the grain stores fall short.
The Dakota Freie Presse was published at Aberdeen, and about which we
erected in a park in downtown Aberdeen a highway historical marker in July, 1990.
Then and now I am emphasizing how badly we needed the Dakota Freie Presse in
the early years of the immigration of the Germans from Russia. It was an organ that
united this ethnic group, wherever in the world the people happened to be living.
Unfortunately the paper was driven out of existence, for a variety of reasons, but one
of which was an indictment brought by the Federal government under the espionage
act in January 1918. Since 1954 the Dakota Freie Presse is no more. But there is
another paper that has vague promise, if not to fulll a similar mission, then at least
to function as an organ of the Soviet Germans. I refer to the weekly, Neues Leben, the
Moscow paper of the Soviet Germans which until recently was published by Pravda,
the Soviet newspaper publishing giant of the Communist Central Committee.
At the end of 1990, Neues Leben was taken over by a cooperative called Bojus,
and an association of Soviet Germans. Gregor Kursell, a journalist from western
Germany worked for the paper in late 1990 and wrote a report in a Bonn newspaper.
Normally Neues Leben publishes simple stories, often about a German who has just
won a medal for heroic labor, perhaps something about ethnic German folk dance
troupes, and always plenty about local politicians, a few poems, short stories, cook-
ing recipes and a childrens column. Virtually no issue appears without some article
on a high output German worker and a readers report about the 1941 deportation
and labor camps in which the Germans were forced to serve. The papers recent
concern is the Autonomous Republic of the Volga Germans. Will it be re-set up?
A secondary mission of the paper is to prevent two million Soviet Germans from
immigrating to the Federal Republic,22 It appears that the editors are trying to stem
the tide by publishing horror stories about how the Soviet Germans have interacted
with life in crass, capitalist Germany.
Another paper, formerly the Rote Fuhne, but now the Zeitung fur Dich is urging
minority status for the Germans with full autonomous rights as a device to slow the
prospects that all the Germans will be departing.
With the realization that German has become a foreign language for many of
the Soviet Germans, Neues Leben publishes its most important articles in Russian.
Recent speculation is rife about what will happen not just to the Soviet Germans but
also to Neues Leben, Zeitung fur Dick and others once the free market rids it of the
subsidy that keeps it in print. Perhaps one of the papers will succeed in becoming a
rallying force for all of Soviet Germandom.
We might wonder, though, what will ensue if, as predicted, 90% of the Soviet
Germans emigrate. The readership in that case would plummet faster than it did for
the Dakota Freie Presse! After all, the Dakota Freie Presse lasted 36 years from its
darkest hour in 1918 until 1954.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Survey + 1990
In January, 1990 there were about two million Germans in U.S.S.R.. They
were at this time the fourteenth nationality in the U.S.S.R.. There are more Germans
there than Estonians or Latvians who have their own republics. And more Germans
than Thears or Komis who live in Automomous Regions.
Until 1941 the Germans were almost exclusively farmers or lived in the
country. But now more than fty percent of them are town dwellers in Kazakhstan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan and Western Siberia.
In 1955 amnesty had allowed the deported Germans to leave the artic zone. It
didnt permit them to settle in the European part of Russia. In 1964, the Germans
were cleared of the charge that had created this deportation, namely that they were
ifthe columnists that had supported Hitlers invasion. The deportation of the Ger-
mans was now declared to have been an arbitrary action of Stalin.
Depsite their rehabilitation, the Germans were not permitted to return to their
former settlements, such as on the Volga, or where they had been deported from.
This permission was given in a secert decree of 1972 which only a few came to
know about. Even so, there are a few Germans living in the area of the old Volga
settlement again. Most have grown accustomed to their new homes and have no
intention of going back, especially since only the old people remember the former
settlements.
It is probably too late now to create an autonomous area specically for the
Germans. Perhaps only a small number of them would settle there. The young
Germans in the Soviet Union now speak only a little German, and then not high
German but their regional dialects which is Niederhessen for the Volga Germans,
Slavian for the Black Sea or Beserabian Germans such as Grandma Schootz was,
and a mixture of dialects. Even where there is a large percentage of the population
is German, as is the case of many towns now, they are not allowed to have their own
school. German lessons should be provided in schools for those whose mother tongue
it is and whose parents request it providing there are a certain minimum number of
pupils, but they are often deliberately obstructed by regional or local administration
or unwittingly neglected.
In 1989 authorities have become more liberal toward German churches than in
recent years. It is still required, however, to register a church with the authorities.
This varies from region to region and most churches are able to devlope their youth
program in relative freedom. The authorities dont want to set a precedent by allow-
ing church organizations and they are the most uncomfortable with the Catholics in
regard to Soviet idiologist. Registration sometimes is curtailed by destruction within
a church body carried out by K.G.B. directed church members, church leaders, and
sometimes even the pastors.
Those leaving their homeland that was occupied for over a hundred years
found it to be a traumatic event.
Here is typical data on a typical family in South Russia in 1988. They will
have a garden by the house where they grow vegatables and clover for hay for the
cow in the winter. The clover is cut ve to six times a year and they ahve their own
well and pump to irrigate the garden. Besides the cow they keep one or two pigs
and chickens. Products that they dont use are sold on the open market and they
dont have to pay taxes on that income. There is no property tax, but they pay 15
rubles annually for insurance, that includes the cow. Now a ruble in Italy is about
the same -- two rubles is about the same as a dollar here, so they are paying about
seven dollars and fty cents annually for insruance.
One person came to this country [America] in 1988 and exlaimed that, We are
still 100 years behind you. What amazed her most was the check out at the super
market, the scaner. Herr Gott, they dont have to gure anything. In other words,
they didnt have such things over there. They would drive aroudn and she would say,
Dont you have any dirt roads? So you dont even get your shoes dirty?
159
Her father in 1930 was arrested and sent to Siberia, the rest of the family in
this instance was deported to Kazakhstan. Her grandfather was too sick to go so
they took his older son, which was her father. Teh rest of the family was branded
as Kulaks, which meant that they were wealthy farmers.
The revolution included a program to redistribute the land tothe peasants, so
those large land owners as they were called -- many of the Germans qualifying for
this term - Kulak - were loaded with many others in box cars and sent to Kaakhstan.
When they arrived they were unlodaed in a desert area which had no shelter and
hardly anything else, even the water was rationed and distributed by the cup. Fights
broke out over every cup of water, many people died because of lack of food and
water. After a few months they were mvoed again to a place on good land and near
a river. People were sheltered in barrackes, three of four families in one big room.
My family consisted, she said, of my paternal grandparents, my mother, and four
children. I was nine years old and had to work in the eld. While we were struggling
to survive my father was in a prison camp in Siberia. He escaped and came to our
original home town to nd that we had been sent to central Asia. Relatives knew
already where his family was so he left to search for us. On his way he stopped
at a neighboring village where a friend he had done business with for many years
owed him some money. The man welcomed him like he always had on previous
occasions, when the question of money came up the man said You stay here and
I will go get it. Sure enough a few minutes later he returned not with the money,
but with the police. My father was arrested again and sent to a prison camp in the
Karagamill area. He once again escaped, found a stray camel and used it to travel
southwest, mostly by night. After many weeks, many encounters and many difcul-
ties, he reached his destination, and my father was reunited with us again. He foudn
our conditions indescribable, we were half starved and half naked, plagued by lice
and bugs. My father went to work on a tractor in the elds and looked for a house.
He found one in a small village, it was run down but better then the barracks. He
worked day and night and eventually was promoted.
As Kulaks, they were restricted and under constant control of police. They
couldnt go anywhere without special permission until Stalin died in 1953.
Her father was not afterwards recognized as being an escapee. During the war,
almost all of the men and women were mobilized and taken to the Trudarmiya. Her
father was spared as a farm expert and a successful foreman in a tractor brigade.
Through his inuence he saved many men from being drafted because he needed
them to produce farm products for city workers and army. When the war was over
many didnt return from those work camps. To this day some families till do not
know what happened to their father, husband or son; or they know but were never
ofcially notied.
After she retired she did soem traveling throughout Russia. She visited an uncle
in Siberia, and a cousin in her original village on the Volga. Her cousin had returned
with his family after Stalins death. Other German families had also returned. When
she arrived at her birthplace, where only Germans had lived before these families
had been deported, she saw a different picture. Instead of friendly faces and well
kept houses, she met Russians, Ukranians, Poles, and other ethnic people, and over
half the houses were torn down or were in ruins. The church and other landmarks,
even the creek where they swam as kids had disappeared. The house she had been
born in, and the one her uncled had been born in, were still in fairly good condition
and occupied. This was in 1981.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
As of 2-1991, a number of the villages may have undergone the following
typical changes according to Art Flegal his cousin in Kuban River area. It is now
very different, on the main street the houses were bulldozed out. The street was even
changed into a different direction; it had run north and south, now it runs south-east
and north-east. There was a new road going through there and houses were built
along there at a different angle. The church now instead of being a church, had a at
top roof. Non-Germans had removed the steeple and so on. It was either a greenery
or a dance hall. Neuheim is really pronounced Moyhiam [that is the German sound].
Arts cousin, who turned to East Germany eight years ago came back to the Kuban
and when Art talked to him later he related that there were quite a number of German
families there. That they had come from Siberia, gone back to their Volga homeland
and found that they were not liked there so they came down to the Kuban River area
where they were not as badly unaccepted. They experienced harrassment there in
the Volga. They were not rejected quite so badly in the Kuban villages. The only
Germans that would have been native would be a woman who married a Russian.
They were the only people who lacked traditional German persecution whereby by
Septmeber and October of 1941 they were hauled away in boxcars to Siberia. The
women who married Russians were not hauled away in a boxcar. This may be why
Vera Leopoldavana Anapolsky married Mr. Anapolsky; because he was a Russian
- even though he may have been a Russian Jew -- that created the environment by
which Vera was able to avoid the usual deportation in Siberia.
In these villages - if it is a Besserabian village - there will be walls around
the houses, the walls along the street about four or ve feet tall they will be white
washed and they will have benches in the street in front of them along with them.
160
They would go out and visit passer-bys or watch or sit there, maybe in the evenigns.
The streets are very dusty.
A book by Kewports, or something like that, called the HARVEST OF
SORROWS, told about the unthinkable things that happened to people mainly the
Ukranians, but similar things happened to our Germans. Oen was, for example, that
children would be orphaned for one reason or another. 4 - 5 - 6 year old children
would be left to fend for themselves. One that survived learned how to catch birds
and mice in order to survive. He got so clever he could con you out of the whites
of your eyes.
The American delegation found many Germans from Russia in Stuttgart, Of-
fenburg and Weingarten searching for their American cousins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
1988-2000
Until a few years ago, the various interest agencies and umbrella organizations
scattered over the entire city of Moscow had at their disposal, at best, technically
unsatisfactory, narrow, barely comfortable, and moreover cost intensive conditions for
their activity. Today, all the organizations are concentrated under one roof, generously
supplied in all operational areas, additionally they enjoy exemption from rent. Lead-
ing organizations such as Rebirth (Wiedergeburt), the International Organization of
German Culture (Internationaler Verband der deutschen Kultur), the Federal National
Cultural Autonomy (Foderale Nationale Kulturautonomie), the Social Academy of
Russian-German Science (Gesellschaftliche Akademie der rufJlanddeutsclien Wis-
senschaft), the Youth Circle (Jugendring), and the State Social Russian-Germans
Fund (Staatlich-gesellschaftlicher Fonds Rublanddeutsche), to name only the most
important, presently are able to pursue their comprehensive socio-political and cul-
tural as well as education-related tasks with considerably expanded possibilities. In
the circle of other national ethnic groups they can also live out their own German
traditions and openly display the same to an interested public.
At the initiative arid with the active participation of Russian-German commu-
nities, the House sponsors events according to a detailed monthly program, such as
ethnic and classical music evenings, exhibits of new paintings by living artists, and
various other exhibits in three-week succession, lm and video afternoons, seminars
and meetings of seniors, those who had been in the trudarmiya (labor army), as well
as youth, dance, family, and disco events, lecture and discussion rounds. Addition-
ally, there is a visible community interest: three choirs, ethnic dance groups, theater
studio, childrens oral activities group, and guitar playing, among other activities.
Events like these are expanded in a multifaceted way with regional studies including
information on all aspects of modern Germany, often by guests of the House from
Germany. Recently, the various groups, with Russian and German state support,
organized the Festival of German Culture in Moscow (Festival der deutschen Kultur
in Moskau) with impressive results, drawing many receptive visitors, a great part of
them to the Moscow German-Russian House.
The German-Russian House also accommodates the editorial staff of the Mos-
kauer Deutsche Zeitung (Moscow German Newspaper), which in a growing Russian
as well as German-language installment, has found a considerable circle of readers
even in Germany, as well as a new childrens coloring magazine in German.
Under the direction of the Social Science Academy of the Russian Germans
(Gesellschaftliche Wissenschaftsakademie der Rublanddeutschen), an editorial staff
is presently working in collaboration with several Russian and German authors on a
three volume encyclopedia, The Germans of Russia (Die Deutschen Rublands)
1988-2000
In the short but very important period at the end of the 1980s and the beginning
of the 1990s, publicity played a great role in the political battles arising from the
matters of rehabilitation and re-establishing the autonomy of Germans on the Volga.
A multitude of articles appeared in the Neues Leben (Moscow), Freundschaft, and
Deutsche Allgemeine (Alma-Ata) newspapers.
Changes in the overall political conditions of the country, open access to de-
classied collections in the archives, the passage of legal and normative acts for
the rehabilitation of repressed peoples and victims of political repression, ofcial
acknowledgment of illegal and criminal acts, the founding of the Confederation of Re-
pressed Peoples (1990), the increase in the social-political movement of Germans and
the establishment of Wiedergeburt (Renewal) (1989), and many other factors-enabled
scholars to turn to the research of matters which had already become history.
The publication of memoirs, testimony, and letters of eyewitnesses occupies a
special place in historiography. These memoirs, in part, augment the ofcial docu-
ments. G. Walters book Zone of Total Silence can be mentioned here. It was re-
published in 1998 with documentary narration of V. Hergert, V. Fuchs, and others.
The appearance of a series of monographs, based on solid historical information,
in search of historical truths has drawn signicant scholarly attention to the topic.
More than thirty candidate and doctoral dissertations on the subject in addition to
regular international and regional conferences have also assisted in increasing inter-
est. Basic research directions include history, levels of German colonization, social
and economic development and daily life activities in the colonies, religious culture
of Germans, autonomy of Germans on the Volga, the repressive politics against the
Germans during the Soviet period, deportation and Trudarmiya, migration processes,
and contemporary problems of Russian Germans.
A large con-
tribution in support
of the research ex-
ami ned has been
contributed by the
International Union
of German Culture
(MSNK, IVDK).
Testifying to
t he mul t i f acet ed
themes of this re-
search is the pub-
lishing of materials
from the third sci-
entific conference
in Omsk, Germans
of Siberia: History
and Culture, and
the dissertations and
books of T. Smirnova
and S. Rublevskaya
about the contemporary ethnic processes that resulted from ethnographic expedi-
tions and questions of traditional and contemporary culture, and calendar customs
of Germans of Germans in Siberia.
The second enormous problem in researching the Soviet Germans of Siberia
is connected with their de-facto deportation from the European part of the U.S.S.R.,
161
162
the special populations, and the realities of their contemporary situation. A Schadt,
T. Chebykina, and V. Bruhl have tried to dene more precisely the regions of their
diaspora, the conditions of arrival of tens of thousands of members of the special
population in Siberia, their legal nad social status, their necessary internal migra-
tions, and so forth. The historical aspect and contemporary situation of Germans in
the Tyumen oblast is clearly stated in E. Eichelbergs mongraph.
FROM CATHERINE TO KHRUSHCHEV, THE STORY OF RUSSIAS GERMANS, AUGSTUMS PRINT-
ING SERVICE, INC., LINCOLN, NE ISBN#0-914222-05-8 by Adam Giesinger
BEFORE THE REVOLUTION, RUSSIA AND ITS PEOPLE UNDER THE CZAR, KYRIL FITZLYON AND
TATIANA BROWNING, THE OVERLOOK PRESS, WOODSTOCK, NY. ISBN#0879511672
THE GERMAN-RUSSIANS, KARL STUMP,
THE BASIS OF SOVIET STRENGTH, GEORGE B GRESSEY, MCGRAW-HILL BOOK CO., INC., 1945
NORWAY SCENERY & PEOPLE MITTET & CO. A/S - OSLO PRINTED BY CHR. GUNDERSEN, OSLO,
NORWAY
OUR OLD WORLD BACKGROUND BY BEARD & BAGLEY, THE MACMILLIAN CO., 1927.
HARPERS NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE VOLUME LXI, JUNE TO NOVEMBER 1880, NEW YORK,
HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS, 327 TO 335 PEARL ST, FRANKLIN SQUARE.
THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SOVIET UNION, VICTOR AND JENNIFER LOUIS, ST. MARTINS
PRESS, NY. ISBN 0-312-15753-3.
THE RUSSIAN COUNTRY, BRIAN MOYNAHAN, RANDOM HOUSE, NY. ISBN 0-679-42075-4.
OLD GEOGRAPHY BOOKS.
1800s HARPERS.
WESTERN ELECTRIC NEWS MAGAZINE
COMMENTS REGUARDING THE CHARATARISTICS, FORMATION OF AND DEMISE OR RRs AND
TOWNS FROM A BOOK: SILENT TOWNS ON THE PRAIRIE BY KEN C BROVALD WITH PERMIS-
SION FROM PICTORIAL HISTORIES PUBLISHING CO., 713 SOUTH THIRD ST W, MISSOULA, MT
59801. 406-549-8488. phpc@montana.com
COMPOSSITIONS OF (LIKE SCHOOL BOOK-REPORTS) HAVING MUCH INFORMATION REGUARD-
ING HOW AND WHERE OUR FAMILIES LIVED IN RUSSIA WERE FROM ARTICLES IN THE TWO
GERMANS FROM RUSSIA SOCIETIES EARLIER MENTIONED.
163
164
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Jacob Eckerdt came to sections 30 & 31 just East of Hansboro and bordering Canada in 1900 after a brief stay
with his brother John, sections 26, 27, & 28 (lower part of township). These Eckerdts (and Jacobs wife Mar-
garette Herdt) were born in Huck on the Volga(1854 & 1864) descendents of Anton Eckerdt who had come from
Darmstadt Germany in 1792.
John had homesteaded at the North tip of Rock Lake in 1897. Jacob brought his children Jacob Jr., John, Conrad,
Maria, Elizabeth, & Katherine.
After establishing his home here, he returned to Russia to sell the large family farm ( Kutor). He was gone on this
eventful journey for over a year. At one time, there stood a beautiful barn on his farm near Hansboro.
Jacobs brother, John (address Antwerp (lived across the road from Pete Geyer (they both came to Winnepeg in
1893 and walked to N.D. in June 1893))) was somewhat of an inventor. He made and sold a unique style of butter
churns to farmers in the area. John moved from his homestead in 1911 to Sarles where he lived and continued
his gunsmithing and inventing until his death in 1945. All but one (Albert) of his children moved away prior to
1927.
Jacob continued farming until sickness and then death in 1927. Nearly all of his children remained in the area.
One son died less than 4 months old and is buried in Dash cemetary: name Adolph. The oldest, Katherine married
Philip Heldt in Russia in 1893 and had 8 children. Alex Heldt and a few others remained in the area. Philip Heldt
homesteaded a small plot next to Jacob in 1900. Maria married Edmund Klebaum and had 10 children. Two of
these still live nearby. Elizabeth married George E. Geyer. One grandson (Eugene Norheim) lives in the area.
Jacob Jr. married Alice Bauer and had two daughters: Thelma Good and Donelda Lucas. Thelmas son Steven
Good resides on Jacob Srs homeplace. Johns daughter, Irene Lawrence lives in Langdon. Johns son: Jon R. was
well known in the area as a teacher and band conductor. Konrad married Carried Martin. One of his daughters:
Dorothy (Mrs. Glenn Olson) still lives in the area. Rachel married Fred Bucholz. One of their children has lived
A. Philip John Heldt (Johann Philipp Held) b. Ju114. 1869 d. Nov 10.1963 DL. ND bur: Hansboro ND
m. Sep 3/5?, 1893 Kamferland, (on the Kuder River), Katherine (Maria Katarina) Eckerdt
b. Jan 26,1873 d. Dec 16/7?,1927 (d/o Jakob EckerdtlEkkart b. 1854 & Margaret Herd b. 1855)
1. Mary K (Maria Kaderia) b. Jun 11,1894 Odessa Russia d. Mar 22,1984 Cando ND
m. Jun 0,1910 Crystal City, Manitoba Hunter (Steve) Kerr Watts b. Ju116, 1883
(son of Si Watts & Amanda McQueen) d. Feb 22, 1962 bur: DL, ND cemetery .
a. Lillie May b. May 11, 1911 d. Mar 8, 1953
m. Nov19, 1930 Percy Miller
1. DonaldPercyb. Jul 20, 1931DL,ND
m. Sonja
2. Darrell Wayne b. Feb 7, 1933 DL, ND
b. Daisy Le~Nov 27,1912 Sarles ND
m. Jun 7, 1938 Cut Bank, MT Adolph Hoff (Huff?)b. Aug 1. 1910
(son of Vincent Hoff & Maty Scherger)
1. Judith Kay b. Jan 15, 1940
m. Donald Perry
2. Karen Dale b. Jan 8, 1945
m. Ballard
c. Hunter Dale b. Aug 8, 1921 d. Jun 15, 1944 KIA Cherbourg France, paratrooper
buried in Devils Lake ND Purple Heart. Silver Star - Heroism. Presidential Citation-
Gallantry in Action
m. Ruth Bernham
II. John Heldt b. Aug 6,1895 Odessa Russia d. Aug 16, 1982 Williston, ND, ND bur: 100F Cemetery RL. ND WWI veteran
m. Dec 9. 1925 Cando. ND - Judge Brooke Velma Lauree Doty b. Jun 17, 1906
(dau of Henry Louis Doty & Grace Adell Smith) d. Feb 25 2002 Cando ND
a. -Lohn(Jack) Willard Heldt b. Dec 4,1927 Cando ND
m. Oct 5, 1949 Martz family farm by Calvin ND Delores Joan Martz b. Oct 1, 1931 Calvin ND
(dau of Casper C Martz & Marguerite Copelan)
1. Cheryl Dyanne b. Jul 31. 1950 Cando ND
m. Aug 7, 1971 Eggland ND Terry Joseph Kulik b. Nov 18, 1945 Twin Fall ID
A. Marcia Michelle b. Jun 3,1973 Honolulu HI
m. Feb 19, 1994 Russell Young b. Dec 27, 1970
1. Brielle Elise b. Dec. 13, 1 999 Twin Falls ID
2. Jillian Elaine b. Feb 8. 2003 Twin Falls ID
B. Kirby Joseph b. Mar 28, 1978 Fargo ND
m. June 8, 2002 Kristina Jones b. Feb 19.1980
2. Lynette Adell b. Oct 16. 1953 TCMH Cando ND
m. Mar 9, 1973 Cando ND Gary Lynn Shock b. May 21, 1951 Cando ND
A. Traci Lynn b. Jan 11.1975 TCMH Cando ND
m. June 22. 2003 Church of the Brethern Cando ND Jason Lura b.Apr 5.
1975 Carrington ND
1. Batlee Lynn b. Sep 7, 2004 Bismarck ND
B. Travis John b. Oct 23, 1977 TCMH Cando ND
1. Cassandra b. Jul 10, 1994
3. Patricia Lou b. Jun 11, 1956 Cando ND
m. Nov 11, 1977 Steven Lloyd Cook b. Mar 30. 1954 Hays KS
A. Ryan Lloyd b. Oct 1. 1980 Hays KS
B. Kayla Jo b. May 17. 1983 Hays KS
b. Glenn Dale Heldt b. Jan 23. 1929 Aunt Ruby Beachlers farm. Korean War veteran
m. Sep 29, 1950 Rock Lake ND Florence Georgina Eller b. Dee 22, 1929 RockLake ND
(dau of John Luther Eller & Elva Retta Leonard) d. Dec 3, 1993 Rolla ND
1. Jacqueline Marie b. Jul 23, 1951 Enterprise (Camp Rucker) AL
m. Dec 29,1972 RL ND Edward Curtis Olson b. Apr 30,1953
A. Laurie Jo b. Mar4, 1977 Silvis IL
m. Jul 24, 1999 Jeffery Lewis Schwartz b.
1. Bailey Lucas b. Feb 3, 2004
B. Brett Edward b. Apr 5, 1979 Rockford IL
C. Scott Glenn b. Sept 24, 1985 Rockford IL
2. Steven Philip b. Jul 29, 1954 Rolla ND d. Apr 14,1973 RockLake ND
3. Mark Jon b. Nov 10, 1959 Cando. ND
m. Aug 1, 1981 Jamestown ND Debra Lynn Wong b. Dec 10,1958 Fargo ND
(d/o Larry Wong & Elvina_)
A. John Jacob b. Dec 7, 1984 Nederland TX
B. Katherine Ann b. Sep 5, 1986 Nederland TX
C. Karl Phillip b. Aug 6, 1991 Owatonna MN
D. Brianna Jov b. Nov 23,1994 Owatonna MN
4. Merri Jo b. May 11, 1963 Cando ND
m. Jul 16, 1999 Todd Allen Christlieb b. Jun 2,1968 (s/o Richard Leon Christlieb & Josephine Louise
Litzau)
A. Cameron Todd b. Dec 4,1999 Fargo ND
B. Peyton Marie b. May 30, 2002 Fargo ND
c. Marvin Louis b. Jan 8.1936 d. Jan 23.1936 buried: RockLake ND -IOOF cemetery
*d. Bonnie Glee Heldt b. May 30, 1939 Cando ND
m. Sept 27,1958 Sidney MT, Lansdale Methodist Church, Richard Lee Horner b. June
28. 1935 RockLake ND bapt. Auq 23, 1935 Bisbee ND (son of Clyde Miller Horner b. April
27. 1897 Waterloo IA d. Mar 4. 1982 Devils Lake ND & Lillie Amanda Larson Kvalevog
b. May 20,1902 d. Aug 12, 1974 DL ND)
1. Susan Glee b. April 20, 1960 Minot ND
2. Richard Robert b. Oct 16, 1961 Hazen ND
3. Jeanne LaRee b. Dee 17.1962 Powers Lake ND -
3. Phillip Jr b. Dec 2,1896 Odessb Russia d. Aug 29,1943 Oregon bur: Hansboro ND
m. Dec 29,1921 DL, ND Frances Geyer b. Apr 27,1900 d. Dec 20,1956
(dau of Peter Geyer & Johanetta Frick)
a. Evelyn b. Oct 4, 1923 Oregon
m. Eugene Potter, have 3 girls
b. Audrey b. Apr 25, 1924 San Bernadino CA
m. w/4 kids
4. Alexander b. Oct 16,1898 d. Aug 12, 1899 Neiheim, Russia
5. Elizabeth Else? (Betty) b. Feb 7, 1900 Odessa d. Oct 12,1926 Minneapolis MN
bur: Hansboro ND
m. Jun 11, 1923 Johri (Jack) E OConnor
a. Elizabeth b. Oct. 1926
m. Leo Reynolds w/2 kids
6. Frederick b. Aug 1, 1901 Towner Co ND d. Dec 4, 1997
m. Mav 16, 1931 Chicago IL Dorothy A Degroff d. Jun 20,1981 Miami FL no kids Evansville Ind
7. Alexander (Alex) b. Jul 28. 1903 d. Nov 23.1999
m1. Dec 14, 1928 Cando ND - Judge Brooke, Muriel Ella Doty b. May 27,1904 (d/o
Henry Louis Dotv & Grace Adell Smith) d. Mar 29. 1961/2? Devils Lake ND
a. Donald Richard (twin) b. Jul 23. 1929/30?
b. Donnie Lou (twin) b. Jul 23. 1929/30?
m. Jul 14. 1956 Gt Falls MT Joseph V Schramm b.
1. Julie Marie b. Jun 5. 1957
m. Feb 20. 1982 Lock Adam Braly
A. Adams b. Jun 1. 1989
B. Elizabeth b. Mar 10. 1992
m2. Eleanore Klein
8. Edmund Wilbur b. Mar 8. 1905 d. Jul 2003 Everett WA
m. Oct 1935 Devils Lake ND Bonnie Bell Miller b. Nov 11. 1907 DL ND d. Ju125. 1999 Everett WA
a. Donald b. 1940 Everett WA
b. Dale b. 1943 Everett WA
9. Adolph Albert b. Sep 26, 1907 d. May 14. 1918 Devils Lake ND bur Hansboro ND
died after being beaten by a school teacher
10. Violet Rachel b. Oct 30.1909 d. Mar 6.1925 buried Hansboro Cemetery ND
11. Eleanora Pauline b. Jul 24, 1913 d. Nov 5, 1993
m. Jun 22, 1935 Munich ND Victor L Hanggj b. Calvin ND
a. Betty Joan Katherine b. Jan 6. 1934
m. June 2. 1956 Bismarck William Ronald Zachmeier
1. Michael Wlliam b. Mar 31. 1957
m1/div 1. Marla Lewellen
m2/div 2. Jane Houston
2. Marcia Louise b. Mar 20. 1958
m. Robert John Ruh
A. Katrina Sophia
3. Robert James b. Nov 15. 1959
4. Rebecca Marie b. Dec 29. 1960
m Theodore Paul Kean
A. WilIiam Robert
B. Sarah Clare
C. Tyler Stephen
5. Kathleen Joan b. Dec 24, 1961
6. Kelley Jean b. Sep 3,1963
m. Donald Alan Franklund
b. Janis Victoria b. May 31,1938 Langdon ND
m. Jul 8. 1957 Joseph J Delvo
1. Jaymes Joseph b.May 5. 1958
m/div. L.isa
A. .Justin James
B. Lornn Montgomery
C. Chelsea Morgan
2. Janeen Valerie b. Mar 28. 1959
m. Allan Charlton
3. Jennilyn Job. Sep 14, 1960
m. Carl Evans
A. Jessica Renae
B. Gavin Joseph
C. Caitlyn Justine
4. Jillene Maria b. Nov 14.1962
m. Daniel Orcutt
A. Dannica Marie
B. Krystalyn Ashley
5. .Julie Renae b. May 23, 1965
m. Todd Loreth
A. Kelcey Renae
6. Joel Victor b. Apr 9,1968
7. Jonathan Paul b. Feb 3. 1971
8. JoriIynCatherine b. Jan 10, 1973
c. Robert Victor b. Mar 30.1941
m. Sarles ND Carol Marie Bassingthwaite d. Mar 6. 1981?
1. Cheryl Lynn b. Jan 8. 1963
2. Jeffery Allen b. Jan 21. 1964
3. Denise Susanne b. Aug 4,1968
4. Laurie Ann b. May 7,1974
12. Esther Helena b. Nov 8.1915 d. Mar 18.1995
m. Jun 4, 1937 Munich ND Victor M Wirth b. Mar 31.1915 d. Sep 16, 1975 Fargo ND
(s/o M J Wirth & Martha Janowski)
a. Sharon Gayle b. Jan 28. 1938
m. AIphonse Schuler
1. \/ickoriam
m.Wesley Wood
A, Brenda
B. Victor
C. Mindy
2. Allen
m. w/3 kids
3. Curtis
m. Colleen Riggin
A. Alex
4. Lori
m1/div Allen Morris
m2. William
b. Beverly Rae b. Dec 29, 1938
m. J___ Perkins res: Thorton New Orleans, LA
1. Donna
2. Dewey
c. Colleen Rae b. Feb 10. 1942/7?
m. William Fisher wI 3 kids res: Milwaukee WI
d. Terrance Victor b. Oct 14.1947
rn. Linda Forde div.
1. Sharie/Cherie
2. Victor
3. -6.
13. Wilhelmina Ruby b. Nov 3, 1916
m1. 1936 Duncan SiIIers Calvin ND div 1945
a. Bruce D b. Jun 18, 1937
m. Jean Kaiser
1. LaurieJeanb.Aua3.1960
m. Paul HalvorsonI
A. Bjorn b.Feb 2,1992
2. Ann b. Mar 18,1962 d. Mar 19,1988
m2. May 7, 1949 DL ND Neil G Gibbins b. May 31,1918 d. Aug 13, 1982 DL ND
(son of Herman Gibbons & Blanche Amende)
b. Jocalyn/JacAlyn? Rae b. Dec 19, 1949 res: GF ND
m/d. Harlan Iverson
1. Traci Lynn b. Aug 4, 1970
2. Jeremy Dean b. Jan 7, 1975
c. Joni Rae b. Mar 27, 1958 res: Denver COD -
d/o - daughter of
s/o -son (of
John & Amali Eckerdt, listed as early settlers of the area, homesteaded 10 miles southeast of Hansboro in 1897.
They lived nearly in the center of the 3 villages across the road from Pete Geyer in a tiny community called An-
twerp. John came from a large family Kuto in South Russia; had recently married and was still a member of the
Russian army as a gunsmith. He had already served 5 years when he & the Pete Geyer family, The Redingers &
Kuschniks came to Winnepeg in 1892. John & Victory Geyer walked to ND in June, 1893.
John hosted numerous early settlers including his brother Jacob Eckerdt & family, 1900, his wifes parents and
brother Carl Schootz. The Schootz family lived on Eckerdt property. Carl became favored in the area for his ac-
cordian and victrola at dances.
John had 4 daughters while on the farm and moved to Sarles in 1910 and had one son Albert who stayed unti the
mid-1960s. John inventd a number of items including a butter churn which was sold to area farmers. He continued
his gunsmithing, repair work of various types such as clocks. In May, 1916 he bought a Case automobile from C.
Blackorby Auto Sales of Hansboro.